The Manor
by Empress14
Summary: Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Harry Potter. Warning: Explicit scene containing rape/non-consensual sex. Do not read if this disturbs you. Snape is often required to do terrible things in his role as Dumbledore's spy. To maintain his cover, Snape is forced to assault Hermione Granger, when she is captured at Malfoy Manor. Does have a happy ending. M for sex & language.
1. Chapter 1

**Warning: Explicit scene containing images of rape. Do not read if this disturbs you. Like all my stories, this one includes a happy ending.** Even though J.K. Rowling's stories do not describe any of the things Snape is forced to do, in order to remain in Voldemort's good standing, I have assumed that some things would be hard for even him to stomach. To maintain his cover, Snape is forced to rape Hermione Granger.

* * *

Hermione laid on the Malfoy's floor with tears running down her face. Ron, Harry and Hermione had been captured and brought to Malfoy manor. No one, in the Manor, knew for sure if one of the guys they had in the dungeon was Harry, but they suspected it.

Bellatrix had just finished torturing Hermione using the, "Cruciatus Curse," the torture spell that wracked a person's body with pain, but Hermione kept screaming that she didn't know the answers to Bellatrix' questions. Bellatrix left Hermione lying on the floor under a spell that made her incapable of moving or speaking and began pacing back and forth trying to think what to do to the woman next. She had to get the little bitch to talk, it was driving her mad.

Suddenly Bellatrix had what she considered a wonderful idea. She raced over to Hermione and removed the woman's shoes and jeans leaving Hermione lying on the floor in just her jacket, panties and socks. Hermione could only scream inside. She felt the tears falling freely now and feared what Bellatrix had in mind for her.

"Get over her, Draco!" She shouted. Draco came over and blanched when he saw Hermione laying there in her pink, cotton panties. "This little whore won't tell me what I want to know. I bet a good shagging will loosen her tongue. Pull your pants down and fuck her, boy." Narcissa stepped forward and pulled her son back to her.

"Have you lost your mind, Bella? I don't want my son soiled by a mud-blood. What if he got her pregnant? My future grandchild will not have mud running through its veins."

Bellatrix squatted down and placed her hand on Hermione's abdomen making her scream inside where, unfortunately, no one could hear her. "Yes, Sissy, you're right. She is ripe for a child. There's got to be someone stupid enough to fuck this little bitch and risk knocking her up." She looked down at Hermione and said, "I bet you'd talk then, wouldn't you…you little whore? If you thought someone like maybe a half werewolf were going to put a baby in your worthless belly."

Just then two jets of black smoke billowed into the courtyard. Voldemort and Snape appeared and walked into the house with Snape following up the rear. Voldemort looked at Bellatrix angrily and asked her to report. Snape looked to see what Voldemort had pointed to and was horrified to see Miss Hermione Granger laying there in her panties. He kept his face calm and unemotional, yet inside he was cursing that blasted woman for being here…it meant Potter was probably nearby.

"She was captured with two boys in the forest. I have them down in the dungeon, until I know for sure who they are. You see one of them was hit with a disfigure spell and…"

Voldemort screamed at her that he didn't care. He had just learned the location of the elder wand and was not in the mood for her games. He told her he would get rid of her plaything and then pointed his wand at the young woman on the floor. Snape flinched because he knew he was powerless to step in and save her. He had gotten to the point where he was sick of seeing people die and not being able to intervene, but he had a mission. His heart momentarily went out to the girl.

"But my Lord," squeaked Bellatrix, "This is the mudblood Granger…she says the sword is just a copy. I've tortured her but she won't talk. I tried to get Draco to rape the little whore thinking that would make her talk, but Narcissa…"

Voldemort wasn't listening…he was watching Snape's reaction.

"That is a good plan, Bellatrix," he said thoughtfully. Bellatrix bowed deeply in fear and also in wanting of his approval. "However," Voldemort continued thoughtfully, "I think a grown man's cock would do more damage, don't you Severus?"

Taken off guard, Snape flinched and tried to think of something. Voldemort said almost kindly, "If I remember correctly, Severus, you begged me to spare a mudblood once, but she had to die. I will offer you this one in exchange."

Snape gave a half smile that betrayed his nervousness.

"My Lord, you do not owe me anything and I think a few days in the dungeon will loosen her tongue, besides…"

"Silence!" Lord Voldemort shouted. He was getting tired of everyone's excuses.

"Will you deny me the pleasure of watching you fuck that wretched mudblood?" Voldemort's voice became thoughtful again, "I've trusted you with a great many things, Severus, but now I am starting to question your loyalty." Snape stared at the Dark Lord racing to think of something, anything.

Voldemort motioned to Bellatrix and she ran over and removed Granger's panties.

"Take her Severus, now. I want to see you cause her pain; make that mudblood suffer the way she deserves to suffer. Prove your loyalty Severus or I'll be forced to…" Snape could see that Voldemort was thinking of all the terrible ways he could punish him for his disobedience.

Bellatrix came up behind him and whispered in his ear, "Coward…afraid to fuck a young woman…most men would jump at the chance, unless you're not a real man."

"Prove your loyalty Severus…" Voldemort said softly as Nagini slithered into the room and watched from a corner. "Nagini is hungry and I am starting to believe my other followers may be right about where your loyalties lie."

Snape swallowed the bile that had risen in this throat and approached Hermione Granger. He was still trying to find a way out of this, staring down at the helpless young woman's face, racking his brain for a way out. He'd never been with a woman, sexually, and he didn't want his first time to be with Granger. Bellatrix ran up behind him and cast a spell that made his pants and his briefs fall around his ankles. He instinctively covered his nakedness with his hands.

"I'm waiting…" Voldemort said circling him. With a heavy heart, Snape accepted his fate and lowered himself onto the nearly comatose woman. He wasn't sure he could get a hard on, however, Bellatrix thought of that too and whispered another spell…his cock became so stiff it hurt. _Why the hell is she so intent on me doing this?_ He wondered. He heard Voldemort start to growl in anger, so taking his cock in hand, Snape began forcing it into the young woman. He was almost completely inside her now and wondered why she wasn't crying out. He'd met resistance from her body as he forced himself inside her, so he knew she was a virgin and this had to be painful for her. Voldemort must have wondered the same thing because Bellatrix seemed to suddenly remember something and waved her wand at the girl. Miss Granger seemed to be released from whatever spells Bellatrix had put on her and she cried out. Her sudden cries alarmed him and Snape went to pull out of her. Bellatrix, who was laughing and taunting the girl, saw that he was about to stop and put her foot on Snape's backside and pushed him with such force that it drove his entire cock deep inside the young woman. Hermione screamed and Bellatrix roared with laughter.

"Fuck her harder, Severus, or Nagini will have two playthings for dinner. Fuck her until she can't stop screaming. I want to hear the mudblood scream." Voldemort demanded, as he sat in a nearby chair to enjoy the view.

Hating himself more than he ever had his entire existence, Snape fucked the girl so hard he worried that he was doing damage to her insides. She screamed, cried and begged him to please stop. However, he just continued pounding her unmercifully into the floor. He pulled her legs up higher around his waist so he could thrust deeper inside her without hurting her as much. She continued crying and he couldn't even look at her; he kept his eyes closed for fear that Voldemort would see how much he hated doing this. He'd known the minute he slid inside her that he had robbed her of her virginity and hated himself. Pushing all those thoughts aside, he knew he had to concentrate on climaxing or this would never be over.

He concentrated on what it felt like to be having sex with a woman. A moan escaped him as he thought about how good she felt; her entire body seemed to grip his cock so tightly. He knew he shouldn't be thinking about how wonderful it felt to fuck her; not with the pain he was causing her. But, bloody hell, he never knew fucking a woman would feel so amazing. She had been pushing on his shoulders and his chest but he was much stronger than her. Now she was trying to scratch at his eyes. He grabbed both her hands and pinned them above her, still pounding into her. He placed his mouth next to her ear and begged her forgiveness even as she was still crying.

"What are you telling her, Severus?" Voldemort asked, sounding suspicious.

He had to think of something quick. "Uhmm…How good her teenage pussy feels on my man-sized cock, My Lord."

Bellatrix screamed with laughter and he could hear Voldemort laughing as well. Miss Granger had become slick inside but he was sure that was from his arousal, not hers. He couldn't think of that now. He had to hurry and concentrate on spilling his seed. He decided that when the time came, he'd pull himself out and cum on the girl's stomach so Voldemort would know he was finished. His whole body began to shudder as he came close to the finish. Her tight pussy was practically milking the cum out of his hard cock. He held her arms with one hand while he reached between them with the other and stroked her clit. He had read how to give a woman an orgasm and was attempting to do just that. Perhaps he could give her some small amount of pleasure and make this ordeal less traumatic for her. He felt her body begin to shudder around him and opened his eyes. Onyx eyes stared into brown ones, before her eyes rolled up into her head and her body convulsed around his cock. He moaned at the sensation of having her respond to him like this. He covered her mouth with his own, in an attempt to muffle her cry as she orgasmed. He felt his balls tighten and knew he was at the edge of his own orgasm. Bellatrix heard his groaning and when she saw he was going to pull out, she stepped up and pushed her foot on his buttocks again, forcing him to spill his seed deep inside the young woman. He collapsed on top of Granger, completely spent. She had stopped fighting him and was just whimpering now. He gritted his teeth and growled, "I didn't want to cum inside the damn girl, Bellatrix."

Bellatrix just laughed in glee and danced around chanting, "Old Sevie is no longer a virgin," over and over.

Voldemort smiled at him wickedly and asked, "Now was that so hard Severus? You have, once again, proven your loyalty to me. Only a loyal death eater would rape and ravage one of his students in front of an audience. Tell me, how does it feel to rape a student that you'd sworn to protect?"

Snape couldn't even look at the woman he'd just assaulted. Even if she had been a thorn in his side, during his Potions Classes, always showing she could outperform his Slytherin students…she didn't deserve what he'd just done to her. He felt so vile and despicable for stealing her virginity like that. _But what was I supposed to do?_ _Let the snake kill us both and undo all that I have done so far to bring Voldemort's reign to an end?_ He rolled off of her, stood up and began using his wand to clean off his cock. Then he proceeded to pull his pants back up and refasten them. He waved his wand and the young woman was cleaned and fully dressed again. Granger was lying so still on the floor that he momentarily wondered if he had done serious damage to her. He had never felt so disgusted with himself as he did in that moment. He had always been a spectator to Voldemort's evil deeds, always protesting that to actually participate could threaten his position at the school. Now with Dumbledore gone, Voldemort no longer worried about endangering Snape's position. He looked down at her again in pity and wondered if this was what his life would be like from now on. What else would his master expect him to do, now that he was free from Dumbledore's influence? Snape shuddered thinking nothing could be as horrible as what he was just forced to do.

Bellatrix, pouted, "What's wrong, Sevie, you don't want to take her again?"

With a feeling of deep self loathing, Snape strode past her towards the door. Voldemort called out for Snape to stop and wait for him. Turning to Bellatrix, Voldemort announced that he would be gone for an extended amount of time, and she could do whatever she wanted with the girl. Snape heard Hermione screaming again as he followed Voldemort from the manor and prepared to Disapparate. He closed his eyes and tried to block out the sound, wondering what that witch was doing to the young woman. He hoped Miss Granger survived whatever Bellatrix was doing to her. Too many people had already paid with their lives.

They had just Disapparated when Dobby appeared and whisked everyone away. Bellatrix threw her dagger at their retreating figures; however, it only sailed through the mist of their residual Disapparation and embedded itself in the wall...Bellatrix screamed in outrage.


	2. Chapter 2

By this time in the books, Voldemort was already feeling like he couldn't trust anyone, even Snape. Of course, Snape commented at the beginning of the sixth book that the other Death Eaters were going behind his back and whispering to Voldemort that Snape couldn't be trusted. I think Snape would have felt the need to continue proving to Voldemort that he was a faithful servant. Even now, he is still working with Dumbledore's portrait to bring about the demise of Lord Voldemort. Once again, I must state that all things Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling...I am just playing in her world.

* * *

Harry knew that something terrible had happened to Hermione at the Manor but she refused to discuss it. She only went as far as showing them the word, "Mudblood" Bellatrix had carved on her arm. Harry couldn't believe anyone could be so heartless. Hermione slipped and told Harry it had happened after Professor Snape left the Manor. Harry was surprised that Snape had been there but Hermione refused to discuss it, saying that the Professor had left almost immediately after he had arrived.

Hermione didn't tell anyone what Professor Snape had done to her. She kept the horror of what he had done to herself and relived the moment every time she closed her eyes to rest. She couldn't believe that a teacher had done that to her. Sure he seemed to hate her and belittle her in class, but he was supposed to protect his students. Half of her reasoned that Voldemort hadn't given him any choice but the other half believed there was always a choice. She'd lie in bed at night and raise a silencing charm so she could cry. She'd cry for her lost innocence and cry remembering how much it hurt to have him shoving his large cock in and out of her so roughly. His cock seemed to fill her insides completely. It was hard for her to believe that anyone would find that act pleasurable. He was a big man with wide hips. He'd pulled her legs up and wrapped them around his waist as he continued to punish her body. She had looked into his face while he was raping her and it appeared that he was enjoying himself immensely. His eyes were closed and he was moaning, enjoying the feel of fucking her. Then he pinned her hands above her head and moaned some more, begging in her ear for forgiveness and then telling Voldemort that her pussy felt so good on his cock. Sometimes when she thought of how he had reached between them and touched her, she'd feel a little tingle down in her belly. She couldn't believe her own body betrayed her like that. It pissed her off to think somewhere deep down inside, her body actually liked that she had given him so much pleasure.

The night of the final battle, the Order of the Phoenix managed to get into the castle, past all the defenses. Hermione joined them and they entered the Great Hall just as Harry announced to Head Master Snape that he had an extensive Security problem. She saw him standing there and she hated him. Snape had the nerve to look at her. She knew her eyes burned with rage. Seeing him standing there just brought back the horrible memories of him being on top of her and…He took a step towards Harry never taking his eyes off her face. She couldn't look away, wishing that he wouldn't look at her that way…like he was sorry for what he did. Then he was battling Professor McGonagall and flew out the window with McGonagall crying out, "Coward!" _Yes that's what you are,_ she thought, _a coward._

Later that same night they ran down to the boathouse and heard Nagini attack Snape on Voldemort's command. _No,_ Hermione thought, _he doesn't deserve the easy way out._ As soon as Voldemort left they ran inside. Harry bent down to stem the flow of blood on Professor Snape's neck but she pushed him aside. Using her wand she said the healing words that started to seal up his wound. Snape was crying now, and begging her to forgive him. She ignored him and kept working at healing his wounds.

"Hermione what is he babbling about" Ron asked.

She ignored them all and kept working. Snape pleaded with Harry to take his tears. Hermione absentmindedly pulled an empty vial out of her bag and handed it to Harry, as she continued healing Snape—the man who had taken the most precious thing from her. As Harry collected the tears she pulled out her vial of potion for snake venom. She had obtained three vials from Mr. Weasley before they departed on their search for Horcruxes. It was the same potion that had been developed when he was attacked by Nagini. She knew sooner or later one of them would be bitten by that nasty creature and she wanted to be ready. She poured the anti-venom in his mouth and held his chin so he was forced to swallow it. She violently ripped his clothes open and began treating his snake bites; they began to heal immediately. Snape was begging her to look at him now, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She heard him tell Harry that he had his mother's eyes and then he lost consciousness. Hermione worked until she had cured each bite. They heard Voldemort's voice in their head and then Ron was saying they needed to get back to the castle. Hermione told them to go ahead; she was staying with Professor Snape. Ron tried to talk her out of it but she screamed at him to leave her alone, so without looking back, Ron left her. Harry looked at her sadly and then followed Ron. Hermione leaned back against the post across from Snape and waited. If Voldemort sensed that Snape was alive and returned, she would be waiting. In the mood she was in now…no one had better dare mess with her.

Daylight came but Hermione had already drifted off to sleep. Snape stirred and looked over at the sleeping girl…she was leaning against the post and looked so young and innocent sleeping there. He thought death would surely claim him but realized the girl had indeed saved him and marveled at her medical knowledge and skill. He looked again at her sleeping form and his heart went out to her again. She was talking in her sleep, begging someone not to hurt her. He realized immediately that she was dreaming about him. She stirred and seeing him looking at her, turned away and focused on the open door to the boathouse. She pulled herself up to a sitting position against the beam and waited to hear something from the outside world.

"Where did you get the anti-venom, Miss Granger?" he asked, barely above a whisper.

"It's the same anti-venom St. Mungo's used to heal Mr. Weasley. I personally brewed the potion that healed your snake bites." She replied still not looking at him.

"That level of expertise is above your knowledge level, very surprising. Thank…"

"I'm full of surprises," She hissed, now looking him in the eyes. "I'm sure you felt them when you were fucking me."

His eyes widen in surprise at her outburst. "Miss Granger, I'm truly sorry. I had no choice, he would have…"

"Save it for the Dementer's." She spat out as someone came running down the stairs. She raised her wand as Snape tried to rise. "Stay right where you are." She said narrowing her eyes at him. Snape lowered himself back down and awaited his fate.

Harry ran in and was surprised when she flung herself into his arms crying out in surprise and joy.

'It's over, Hermione, it's all over."

She began to cry and he continued holding her, attempting to calm her down. He looked over at Snape and said, "Thank you, Professor."

She pulled herself from his arms and took a step back looking wildly from one man to another. "Thank him for what?" She yelled sounding like she was close to hysterics.

Harry looked at her closely…something was wrong here. Something terrible had happened to Hermione. Something she was trying to hide from everyone. It seemed to have something to do with the Professor. He looked from Snape to Hermione. Professor Snape had regained some of his coloring, but he refused to meet Harry's gaze.

"Why are you thanking that heartless Bastard?" Hermione was demanding while pointing in Snape's direction. Suddenly, Harry felt dread grip his heart, she had been acting strange since they left the Manor.

"Hermione" he said softly, "What happened at the Manor? What aren't you telling me?"

Hermione wrapped her arms around herself and began crying hysterically. Snape closed his eyes and tried to block out the sound of her anguish. That same sound haunted his dreams every night since that terrible day.

"Miss Granger, please…" He whispered, "Please try and understand that I had no choice." Something snapped in Hermione and she closed her eyes, held her ears and screamed at him to just shut up.

"Damn it, Hermione!" Harry yelled at her, "What the hell did he do to you that was so…"

Snape heard Harry's sharp intake of breath when Hermione screamed, "He raped me! That son of bitch raped me at the Manor, when we were captured. Okay? There I said it. Are you happy? He raped me and he enjoyed it. I was a damn virgin and he fucked me so hard I thought I was going to die." She had wrapped her arms around herself and was sobbing so hard she was having trouble catching her breath.

Harry stood there in shock looking at Professor Snape in disbelief. _No_ , Harry thought, _the man who had loved his mum with all his heart would not have done this to Hermione._

"Miss Granger, I had no choice, please believe me. I'm so sorry I hurt you." Snape was pleading.

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing. Professor Snape wasn't denying what Hermione was claiming. Harry felt like he'd been punched in the stomach. This was worse than he'd ever imagined.

She started crying louder and Harry came to his senses. Hermione needed a friend now more than ever. Harry stepped towards her and whispered softly, "I'm going to hold you Hermione." She tried to pull away from him but he struggled with her until she stopped resisting and fell into his arms weeping uncontrollably.

An Auror arrived and demanded, "Did we just hear you say Professor Snape raped you, Miss?"

Snape knew when the Aurors arrived that they would be taking him to Azkaban, but he'd always felt he'd be cleared when all the facts came out. However, now, he wasn't so sure. He looked at the hysterical Miss Granger and realized he'd signed his death certificate the moment he'd touched her. Rape was punishable by the Dementer's kiss. He shook in fear and decided he would have to accept his fate. He just hated the thought of leaving Miss Granger here thinking that he had enjoyed hurting her.

The Auror repeated his question to Hermione but Snape didn't hear her reply. Another Auror appeared and rendered him unconscious with a wave of their wand and transported him to St. Mungo's hospital for treatment and then to the prison to await trial and the carrying out of his sentence.


	3. Chapter 3

Hermione received the good news that her parents had been located and their memories restored. It had been over two months since the war ended, and she was going home for the summer to reunite with them. She needed to get away...the memories Harry showed them, in the pensive, were etched on her mind and at times made her feel as if she were going mad. How could she rationalize the monster who had raped her with the repentant man she had witnessed in the pensive? Harry had shown Ron and Hermione the memories Professor Snape gave him. While they explained a great deal, they also left many questions unanswered. _Why didn't his memories include what he did to her?_ She held her breath the entire time they were watching for fear that she would see herself lying on the floor with him on top of her...but it was like he purposely left that out. There were a few moments of him weeping uncontrollably. He was slumped on the floor in front of Dumbledore's portrait, sobs wracking his body. It appeared that Dumbledore had shed tears in the painting as well. Dumbledore was telling Snape, "She will understand, she will forgive you." Then the memories abruptly ended. Ron had stood pondering aloud what the last bit could be about, but Hermione felt Harry's gaze upon her and could not look him in the eye. He had known right away, just as she had—Snape had told Dumbledore what he had been forced to do to her.

Hermione grabbed her bag and gave Ron and Harry a hug goodbye. Ron told them that he planned on spending the summer helping Lavender recover from being attacked by Greyback. Madam Pomfrey was sure she would only have slight scarring since, like the attack on Bill, Greyback hadn't been in his werewolf form when he attacked her. Harry was living at the Burrow, since he and Ginny had married shortly after the war ended. Harry pulled Hermione aside and informed her Professor Snape's trial was coming up in two weeks. He told her of his plan to show the court Professor Snape's memories, as Professor Snape had refused to say anything in his own defense. Ron was going to attend the trial, and Harry was asking Hermione to please return for the trial as well. Harry felt that the memories along with their witness testimonies could free the Professor. Hermione looked away, she still felt ashamed when she thought of what had happened to her, even though she knew she was the victim. At times she even felt sorry for Professor Snape. When she wasn't reliving it in her dreams she was able to see him as a victim, as well. She knew they would summon her to testify and it scared her to death to think about facing him again and telling perfect strangers what he had been forced to do to her.

"I don't know what all he did to you, Hermione, but I saw a repentant man in that pensive who would have given anything to go back and do things differently."

"There's nothing he could have done differently," She said barely above a whisper. "If he didn't do it, Voldemort was going to feed us both to Nagini."

Harry reached out and pulled her into his arms, not unlike the night he'd held her in the Boathouse.

"Oi!" Ron called, "Is there something I should know about you two?"

Hermione laughed and punched Ron in the arm calling him a big jerk. She stood there for a moment starring into Ron's eyes...so much had been left unsaid. She fought back the tears that threatened to spill over and reminded herself that it was too late. Ron was something else she had lost when Professor Snape—

She smiled and asked him the same thing she asked every year, "You'll write to me, won't you?" He gave her a sheepish grin as she laughed and turned away. Using the Port Key the Ministry had provided, Hermione traveled home.

* * *

It felt so wonderful being home that first week. It seemed as if nothing had changed and yet something had. When Hermione first started having trouble keeping food down she assumed it was the flu or some other bug. However when her mother told her she was going to the store and asked her if she needed any feminine products, Hermione realized she hadn't had her period the last two months. She had assumed it was just her body recovering after being stressed out for over a year.

Seeing her look of alarm her mother approached her but Hermione turned around and raced to the bathroom barely making it in time to lose the breakfast she was so sure she'd be able to hold down. She felt a cold, wet cloth being pressed upon her forehead as her mother helped her up from her kneeling position, on the floor, in front of the toilet.

"Hermione," her mother whispered softly, "I want you to be perfectly honest with me honey. Are you pregnant?"

Hermione began crying and her mother pulled her into a tender embrace. Placing her arm around Hermione she guided her into the kitchen and set her down at the table. Hermione was in a daze as her mother left to make a phone call and then drove her across town to be examined by her family doctor. His examination showed that Hermione was in fact almost three months pregnant. Hermione cried all the way home in the car. She couldn't believe this was happening to her. She was carrying Professor Snape's baby. All she could think of was that the same man who had always belittled her in class had shoved his cock inside her and made her pregnant.

Her mother pulled up into the driveway and suggested that Hermione go lay down until her father got home and they would help Hermione decide what she should do. Hermione lay in her bed and for every bad thought she had of Professor Snape she could think of two good things from the Pensive. Especially the fact that he had shielded her from Lupin the night Lupin had changed into a werewolf and lunged at her.

Suddenly it occurred to her that this was her baby too, it was as much a part of her as it was of him. She placed her hand on her flat belly and promised her unborn child that she would do whatever it took to keep him safe. She didn't feel right calling the baby an, "it," so she just said him, and began thinking of the baby as a precious gift. _Yes, but what about his father?_ That still small voice in her head taunted. _Can you let him go to Azkaban and suffer a fate worse than death, when you know he had no choice? He gave you this gift of life inside you_. Laying there in her bed, she made the decision to try and save Professor Snape from the Dementor's Kiss. She remembered Snape begging her for forgiveness. It wasn't until now that she remembered the look of self-loathing that had remained on his face the entire time he had been forced to hurt her. She had been so consumed with her own grief that she never considered what he must have endured.

Her mother called up to her, saying her father was home. Hermione descended the stairs slowly bracing herself for what she knew she must do. Her father was sitting on the couch wringing his hands. She smiled to herself when she saw her mother sit down on the couch next to him and take his hands, in hers, to keep his hands still.

Hermione took the chair opposite of them and began to tell the story of how she had become pregnant. She told them of Dumbledore's death at the hands of Professor Snape, of her Journey with Ron and Harry over the winter and revealed what Snape had been forced to do to her when they were captured. She told them that she knew now that he had no choice but to do what he'd done. He saved both their lives even if it felt at the time like he'd destroyed hers. She heard her mother quietly weeping but she continued on. She told them about the last night of the war and described Professor Snape's memories in the pensive. Her parents told her they would support her, no matter what she decided to do about her pregnancy. Hermione knew her parents had tried for years to have a child and were ecstatic when they finally managed to conceive her. Deep down, she had a feeling her parents were hoping that she would keep the baby.

She started to rise from her chair when her father admitted that he and her mother had actually met Professor Snape before. Hermione sat back down and stared at them in mild shock. At her urging, he continued.

"It was shortly after you received your letter from Hogwarts," her dad said as he looked to his wife for affirmation and continued when she nodded.

"Tall man, rather pale, raven-colored hair," her father said quietly, as if trying to pull his image from memory. "Rather stern fellow, I don't think I recalled ever seeing him smile...I had a feeling he was embarrassed about his teeth. Of course, being dentists, your mum and I can spot a 'Hider', a mile away."

"A Hider?" Hermione asked, with a small smile on her lips. The description definitely matched Professor Snape. "What, pray tell, is a Hider?"

"Oh, you know...a person who smiles carefully or mutters in a way so that their teeth don't show."

Hermione laughed, in spite of herself, and felt sorry for Professor Snape. He must have realized they were both dentists and was embarrassed by his yellow-stained teeth. No wonder...even during meals in the Great Hall, she only ever saw him drink coffee.

"Why was he here?" Hermione asked, now that her father had piqued her interest.

"Apparently, the Headmaster was away assisting with what he referred to as Ministry business and Professor Snape had been tasked to talk to the parents of prospective students, regarding the importance of their children attending Hogwarts."

Her father rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "I showed him my rare books collection and found him to be rather well-read. Yes, I found him to be quite intelligent. At least our grandchild will have that going for him," he finished dryly.

Hermione laughed and crossed the room to give both her parents a hug before offering to help her mother set the table for dinner. Even if she had trouble holding food down, it would be interesting to hear more about Professor Snape's visit.

A few days later, Hermione received her summons to testify as to what had occurred at Malfoy Manor. Harry had owled her and begged her to return tonight in preparation for testifying tomorrow. After an early dinner, her father called a family meeting to discuss her options.

Before her father even had a chance to speak, Hermione announced, "I've decided I'm going to keep my baby. It's a part of me and maybe the best thing that has come out of the war. As you know, Professor Snape is to go on trial tomorrow and I have to go back and do what I can to save him. Her father started to speak, but Hermione interrupted, "How can I look my child in the eye and tell him I didn't do anything to try and save his father?"

Her father just smiled and said, "That's my girl." Hermione was a little surprised when she heard him say this and even more surprised to see her mum nod her head in agreement.

"We've watched you grow into a brave, intelligent young woman and we will support you in whatever you decide to do. For all the bad that the Professor has done, he also saved you that night and I'll forever be grateful. However," her father continued, "I would think him less of a man if he didn't step up and take responsibility for you and the baby."

"I can take care of myself just fine" Hermione grumbled.

"I know that honey, but you have to be thinking of the baby now. That baby is going to need its father. No, my mind's made up;" her father declared firmly, "Professor Snape needs to do right by you. He needs to step up and make an honest woman out of you. Even if he just marries you in name only, at least the baby will be legitimate and have his name. You can always divorce after the child is born."

Hermione didn't have the heart to tell him that wizarding marriages weren't taken as lightly as muggle ones were. Marriages in the wizarding world were expected to last forever.

"But Dad, he's like...she did the math in her head, almost 18 years older than me."

Her mother took his hand and said, "Your father is 20 years older than me and we have a wonderful marriage."

Hermione fought not to roll her eyes at them.

"Just promise me one thing," her father interjected, "If he offers to marry you, give me your word that you will accept. I'm not asking you to love him, or even live with him, for that matter. However, if I understand correctly, being an unwed mother is severely frowned upon. Even though we, what do you call us...oh yeah, Muggles, don't hold such antiquated views, I have heard that the magical world still does. That is not something I want for my daughter. Please promise me that if he offers, you will accept."

Hermione smiled sweetly at her father. She was confident that even if Professor Snape were pardoned, there was no chance in hell he would offer or even agree to marry her.

"Dad I promise you, if by some great miracle Professor Snape offers to marry me, I will give up and marry him. But if not, I have the right to raise this baby on my own and he can have visitation rights." _Like he'd want anything to do with me or this baby,_ she thought bitterly. As far as she knew, he hated children. She knew her dad was right regarding how the wizarding world viewed unwed mothers. _What choice did she have?_ She was not about to give up the baby she had now come to think of as hers alone. Perhaps, in time, she would be able to change the wizarding world's view on single moms. She was a war hero, after all. Oh course, deep in her heart she knew if she didn't find someone to marry her before the baby's birth, the Ministry would be pressuring her to give him up for adoption. She shuddered to even think about it. Marriage to Professor Snape would have to be better than having her baby forcibly taken from her. Perhaps she could convince Professor Snape to marry her in name only, even if he was sent to Azkaban. It was the least he could do, to ensure she would be able to raise her child. Her reverie was broken when her father smiled and patted her hand.

"That's all I could ask of you dear, and I'll hold you to your word, if the great miracle occurs. Your mother and I tried for years to conceive you. Regardless of what happens, your child will be welcomed with open arms and always know that he is loved.

* * *

Snape had been in Azkaban for over two months and not a day had gone by that he didn't think of what he had done to Granger and how he deserved to stay there the rest of his life. He was so full of despair and yet that's what this place did to you; it slowly sucked the life out of you. He was still Severus Snape inside, the man who had fooled the greatest evil wizard of all time. He still held onto that part, but he had no hope of getting out of here alive. In his lucid moments he would reason that he had actually committed no crimes. He had only watched others commit them and not been able to stop them; however, he'd remember Granger and despair would eat at his very soul. What he had done to her was one of the most heinous crimes in the wizarding world. To take a woman against her will was considered equivalent to murder. At night, when sleep didn't elude him, he'd hear Granger's screams. He'd be right back on the floor of the mansion pinning her arms to the floor and abusing her fragile body. Then the scene would change to what he imagined would happen in the courthouse; just like in the boathouse, she would cry hysterically and scream out that he had raped her. He never cared a great deal about Harry Potter, personally, but he never wanted to see that look of utter disappointment on his or anyone else's face again. No he resigned himself to the truth, he was doomed and the key to it all was Miss Hermione Granger. Even if he were a cruel man he wouldn't be able to gloat about raping Granger. No, what he did to her was deplorable. Sometimes, in his nightmares, she would beg him to just kill her. He couldn't blame her...the thought of him...her ugly, wretched potions professor soiling her body with his…must still drive her mad. He had no news of the outside world, but he knew no one would go through what he did to that girl and not want him sentenced to the Dementers kiss. A sob of despair escaped him as he thought once again that his fate had been sealed the moment he touched her. He managed to gain control of himself and wrapped the one thin blanket around himself, shivering, as his prison clothes were nothing but thin rags. He was so cold—so cold. He heard the guard say his trial would be held tomorrow as he threw in a scrap of bread that Snape devoured hungrily. The cold seeped around him as he thought; _it won't be much longer now_.

* * *

That evening, Hermione's father reminded her of the promise she'd made and she kissed them both before repeating her vow. Hermione walked down the street and waved back at them.

"Did you send the letter with the owl that came to the house this morning?" Mrs. Granger asked her husband, after Hermione disappeared.

"Yep, that man's got to do right by her. She may never forgive me for this, but we've got to think of that poor baby. Giving that child his name is the least he can do."

Hermione arrived at the Burrow around dusk. She knew Ron was over at Brown's house, so she didn't have to worry about seeing him tonight. It still broke her heart when she thought of what might have been. She entered the Burrow and was surprised to see how somber everyone seemed. She caught Harry's eye from across the room and felt her stomach drop...he'd told them what happened.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Ginny, and Professor McGonagall were all gathered around the table. Mrs. Weasley came over and took her into have arms hugging her dearly. Hermione returned the hug and then she hugged everyone else, as well.

"Do you want something to eat?" Molly was asking. Molly proceeded to go down the list of foods available and Hermione had to fight the nausea.

"Maybe just some soup," she replied as she hung her overnight bag on one of the chair backs and sat down. Professor McGonagall was the first to go over their strategy on how to rescue Professor Snape. Hermione kept looking at the floor.

"Of course," Harry said quietly, "all this rests on how Hermione plans on testifying tomorrow."

"What do you mean?" Ginny asked.

"Hermione knows I love her very much," Hermione nodded and waited for him to continue, "But we all know his fate rests in her hands. Either she says he raped her with no regard of his own free will or she tells it like it really happened...Voldemort forced Professor Snape to..."

"I'm pregnant," Hermione blurted out, tears forming in her eyes and she blinked them away.

Harry looked like she had punched him in the gut and fell into the closest chair. Molly began sobbing quietly and Mr. Weasley put his arm around his wife to comfort her. Ginny and McGonagall just sat with stunned looks on their faces.

"Mione, I'm sorry, I didn't know..."

"It's okay Harry." Hermione broke in. "As far as I'm concerned, this baby is the best thing to come out of the war. I've talked to my parents and they know I'm keeping it." She placed her hand on her flat abdomen. "They fully support my decision."

"You're raising it alone?" McGonagall asked with her hand to her throat.

Hermione smiled sadly, "What choice do I have? His father will either spend the rest of his life in prison or suffer the kiss of...don't look at me like that Harry. Even if we all testify, there is no guarantee that they'll let him go. He has too many enemies. I have to be realistic, and I'm prepared to raise this baby alone."

"You won't be alone," Ginny whispered, "you'll have us."

McGonagall cleared her throat and everyone turned to look at her. "You know how the wizarding community views single mothers, Miss Granger. The Ministry has been known to take babies from their mothers and place them in stable homes. Even though you are a war hero, there is no guarantee that your child would be safe from their rules. Perhaps we should be looking for someone to marry you; for the sake of the child, at least."

"I will concentrate on that dilemma, once we are through with this trial," Hermione said bravely.

"We'll help you," Ginny said quietly, "together we should be able to think of someone. First, we'll concentrate on getting Professor Snape cleared, then we'll put our heads together; we should be able to think of someone who would be willing to marry you."

Hermione reached out and squeezed her hand. This all seemed so surreal. She looked around at their smiling faces and thought Professor Snape was damn lucky to have such forgiving friends.

"No more tears," Hermione said trying to be cheerful. "We need to come up with a plan to strengthen the Professor's defense."

Harry crossed the room and engulfed her in a huge hug whispering in her ear, "Please Hermione, please for my Mum's sake, try to help him."

Hermione broke down and clung to Harry as she wept for his mother. She cried because his mother never got the chance to see what a fine young man her son turned out to be. That still small voice inside her whispered, _is that what you_ _want for your child? Longing after the father he never knew when you could have saved him?_ Hermione vowed she would do everything in her power to help Professor Snape, if only for her child's sake.

Pulling out of Harry's embrace, Hermione wiped her eyes and said, "Okay, what's the plan?"


	4. Chapter 4

The courtroom, which was usually crowded, only held five judges, the people that had come to testify on Professor Snape's defense, and the members of the Wizengamot. Minister Shacklebolt had insisted that no reporters would be allowed to witness the hearing. Hermione's stomach did battle with the lunch, consisting of toast and tea, Molly had insisted on her eating. So far, it felt like her stomach was losing.

Everything grew quiet as a cage slowly rose up from the floor, in the center of the courtroom, and she saw that it contained Professor Snape. He appeared to be dressed in rags, was filthy and looked like he had lost weight. _Great Merlin,_ she thought, _aren't they feeding him?_ She fought the urge to cry out to them to let him out. He didn't deserve to be treated like a wild animal.

He looked around the courtroom quickly until his eyes landed on her. She wanted to shrink down into the floor. He looked at her with something akin to despair and closed his eyes, what little color he had draining from his face. She placed her hand on her stomach and prayed for strength.

She kept her eyes closed as one by one, all the witnesses present took their turn at testifying how Severus Snape had spied for the Order. It was finally time for Harry to testify. He gave a brief, heartfelt speech, before showing the judges and members of the Wizengamot the memories Professor Snape had given to him the night of the war. There was a brief period when the judges viewed some memories that Professor Dumbledore had provided. Apparently, a trusted Hogwarts house elf had delivered them to the Wizengamot the day before the trial.

There was a brief recess, and Hermione raced out of the courtroom to use the bathroom. A wizard came out of the courtroom and announced that they were resuming the trial. Hermione dreaded going back into the courtroom; however, with Ginny on one side and Harry on the other, she entered the large room and took her seat.

Hermione chanced a look at Snape and he was staring at her now through hooded lids. It was like he had given up hope. Hermione turned away from his gaze, she couldn't bear to think what he must have suffered while she was busy feeling sorry for herself. "Sorry...I'm so sorry, please forgive me," he had whispered in her ear, towards the end, when he'd pinned her arms above her head. She'd blocked that part out because she had been so consumed with her anger. Now she just felt numb. The anger had left her and she felt nothing but pity for the man in the cage.

It had grown quiet in the courtroom and Hermione realized they were all looking at her. The judge, who sat in the center and slightly higher than the other judges, was calling her to the center podium near Snape's cage and was asking her about the charge she made concerning Snape raping her. She looked at Harry and gained strength from his gaze.

Hermione stood and smoothed down the skirt of the dark blue suit she was wearing. It was a dress suit that belonged to her mother. She wanted to look older than her 19 years. Shakily, she walked over to the podium. Gripping the sides of the podium and hanging on for support, she took a cleansing breath. She was now about six feet from Professor Snape's cage. She could hear his ragged breathing... _he sounds ill_ she thought. She looked at him and he was still watching her with that dead, hopeless gaze. She turned away again. She couldn't bear to see him suffering like this.

"Miss Granger," the center judge was saying. "Due to the memories we have viewed today and the testimony left behind by Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape has been cleared of wrongdoing in the matter of Dumbledore's death. However, there still remains the accusation of rape, which you made against him, the night of the war. Do you wish to press charges? Is the Prisoner, Severus Tobias Snape, to be charged with the rape of an underage witch?"

She heard a soft moan of despair escape Professor Snape. _Technically I had already turned of age and wasn't considered underage at the time._ She reasoned, in her mind.

When she didn't answer, right way, the center judge became exasperated and said, "On the night Severus Snape was taken into custody, Miss Granger, you were hysterical and the Aurors heard you say that Professor Snape had raped you. So I ask you again, Miss Granger, "Did Severus Snape rape you with malice intent and of his own free will at the Malfoy Manor, on the day in question?"

"No, there was no malice, I don't think." Hermione said loud and clear.

There was complete, stunned silence in the courtroom.

One of the other judges spoke up, "Hermione Jean Granger, please be very clear in your testimony today, a man's life hangs in the balance. Please tell the court whether Severus Snape did or did not rape you."

She could see Professor Snape out of the corner of her eye and saw the look of confusion on his face. He knew what had happened and was probably wondering why she was hesitating.

"On that day at the Malfoy Manor, Lord Voldemort," some of the people flinched, "decided that I had information that he could use against Harry Potter. He ordered Professor Snape to rape me. Professor Snape did everything in his power to change Voldemort's mind, however, in the end Voldemort made it very clear that both Professor Snape and I would be eaten alive by his snake, Nagini, if he didn't comply with his demand."

There were several gasps around the court room and the center judge called for silence.

Hermione continued, "Professor Snape was faced with a terrible decision, he could flee and leave me to my fate, as dinner for Nagini, or he could violate every oath he'd ever taken and rape a student."

There was complete silence now and several people seemed to be weighing the decision and wondering what they would do in his place.

Hermione realized that she had created the desired effect and asked, "What would you do if you were faced with that decision? Professor Snape protected Harry, Ron and Me the entire time we spent at Hogwarts. He always put the student's safety before his own, and now, being so close to the end, he's forced to make a terrible decision. Professor Dumbledore once said that decisions are like stones you skip across the water. Even as the stone begins to sink, the ripples or effects can still be seen."

Hermione left this thought with them and turned to leave the podium. However, she paused when the first judge asked her, "and what are the rippling effects of the decision Professor Snape made that night?"

Hermione turned back and stared at the judge. The look in his eyes spoke volumes. She looked at all five of their faces and the realization sunk in… _they knew she was pregnant…but how?_

She looked over at Professor Snape and saw the confusion in his eyes.

Snape was currently wondering _what is she trying to hide, what is she so afraid of?_

Hermione's hands trembled as she gripped the podium. She was trying to think of how to answer, when the Judge announced loudly, "I have a letter here from Miss Granger's father that I want to read to you. It has been entered into evidence on behalf of Professor Snape, which goes a long way to speaking on his behalf—if I do say so myself."

Hermione could almost feel the blood drain out of her face as the Judge began reading the letter.

Snape saw her sway and grip the podium harder to keep herself upright. He sat up as straight as he could in the confined cage and wondered what was going on. He listened to the letter that the judge was reading and was shocked to hear the letter state that her father held no ill will towards the Professor, because Hermione had made it very clear that Professor Snape had no choice in the matter and had in fact saved his daughter's life.

Snape looked at her quickly; she had her head down staring at the podium. He couldn't believe she had come to feel that way.

However, the letter continued, he felt he would be remiss in his duties as her father if he did not insist that Professor Snape do the right thing by his daughter and take responsibility for his actions.

The judge set the letter down and said to Hermione, "Your father's letter goes on to say that he believes Professor Snape's punishment should not be prison. However, your father does believe the only recourse is for Professor Snape to be petitioned by the court to offer you his hand in marriage as a way to make up for taking your innocence, no matter what the circumstances were.

Snape's head snapped around and he looked at Hermione again. _What the hell is going on?_ He thought. _I raped the girl and instead of demanding my head on a platter, her father demands that I be forced to marry her. Shit! Even marriage to Miss Granger would be preferable to a Dementer's Kiss or even life in Prison._ He was starting to think maybe he could be saved after all.

"This is a strong testimony in Professor Snape's defense, Miss Granger, especially since it comes from a Muggle, no less. Please if you will, Miss Granger, tell the court why your father believes Professor Snape should be required to marry you."

Hermione clung to the desk for support. She couldn't believe her own father had done this to her. He had forced her into keeping her vow. She looked at Snape who was sitting up now staring at her as if he couldn't believe these turn of events. He looked at her just as confused as everyone else wondering why her father would want this…want him...for his daughter.

Again he saw the look of fear, or was it dread; he saw when she looked at him. _Damn it, what was it she doesn't want anyone know?_

Hermione turned away, not able to look at him and said barely above a whisper, "Because….I'm pregnant."

Hermione heard Snape's sharp intake of breath and refused to look at him. If she had she would have seen him staring at her in complete shock.

It had never occurred to him that he might have gotten her pregnant. _Shit! She is carrying my child._

"Speak up Miss Granger." The center judge demanded.

"I'm pregnant," Hermione said louder. There were a few gasps from the member's of the Wizengamot. "The night he was forced to rape me, Professor Snape got me pregnant." She paused to catch her breath, "my father believes, that Professor Snape should have to marry me because I am carrying his baby and have decided to keep it."

Professor Snape looked from her to the judges. _Would this be enough to set me free? If I offered to marry Miss Granger, would they set me free?_ He'd never counted on ever taking a wife, hell, he'd never counted on surviving the war...but he did.

Hermione chanced a sideways glance at him and saw the hopeful look on his face. _Oh God_ , she thought, _what had her father done to her? Anybody would choose marriage over imprisonment especially if it carried a sentence of the most painful death imaginable._

Suddenly it was all too much for her to take in. She felt herself falling as everything slowly faded to blackness. Before losing consciousness, she heard Professor Snape cry out "Let me out of here! Let me out of here! Hermione! Hemion..." then all went black.

Harry raced over and caught her before she hit the floor.

* * *

Hermione awoke slowly and realized she was lying on a couch somewhere in a back room and there were people whispering. Someone pressed a cold compress on her head and she recognized the voice of Mrs. Weasley.

"You had us so worried, love, we weren't sure when you were going to wake up."

Hermione sat up amongst protests that she keep lying down. She explained that she was okay; it was just a cross between not eating and not sleeping well. Harry came over and sat next to her, pulling her close so that she could lay her head on his shoulder like he had so many times before.

"Mum would be so proud of you Hermione. You did it. They cleared Snape of all charges; he's going to be released tonight." Hermione sighed. _That's what I wanted, right? My child's father would be free and they could work out some kind of visiting rights so that he could see his child, later of course, when the child was older._

"But, uhmm, there's one thing, Hermione. The courts have ruled that in order for Professor Snape to make this right, and prove he has integrity, he has to marry you."

Hermione thought she was going to be sick. She held her hand against her mouth and forced herself to be calm. She could see the door to the bathroom and worried that she might have to lose the contents of her stomach. "This isn't happening," Hermione whispered when she got past the nausea.

"There's more..." Harry continued, "Some of the judges argued that in changing your story, you know, from the first night when you were screaming in the boathouse that he had raped and tortured you to now… that he had no choice…well, they say they can find you in contempt of court and…put you in jail and…and take the baby away from you."

Hermione started to cry but Harry, dropped to his knees in front of her and looked her in the eye.

"No, no, it's okay. Professor Snape convinced them not to do that. He took full responsibility and also blamed it all on pregnancy hormones or something. He begged the courts indulgence and asked them to allow him to marry you and make things right. He said you and the baby are now his responsibility and he wants to be a good father to your child. It was really cool Hermione, how he convinced them not to punish you as you'd been punished enough already. So, the court agreed with him…you and Professor Snape will be allowed to marry and raise the baby together. Isn't that wonderful?"

Hermione leapt up past Harry and ran across the room into the adjoining bathroom, dropped to the floor in front of the toilet and lost her battle with her lunch.

The center judge, who resided over his trial, escorted Snape into the room, just in time to hear Hermione vomiting loudly. Snape closed his eyes and felt sorry for the girl. He hoped it wasn't her reaction to hearing that she would have to marry him in order for him not to go to prison.

Snape was wearing one of his teaching suits as well as his billowing cape. Mr. Weasley had thought to bring along an overnight bag, packed with some of Snape's clothes from his closet at Hogwarts…just in case he was freed today. Snape congratulated Arthur on his foresight as he did not want to wear the prison rags back to Hogwarts, Spinster's End or wherever he would be living. _Where they would be living_ , he reminded himself. After tonight, Granger would be his responsibility. Snape ran his hand through his damp, stringy hair. He'd been allowed to take a quick shower and then had to dress hurriedly because the judges wanted to go home.

McGonagall walked up to Severus and tried to speak but she started crying instead. Snape looked uncomfortable, and told her that she couldn't have known that he was on the side of the Order the entire time. She continued weeping when she recalled calling him a coward, as he escaped the castle, the night of the war. Snape hugged her gently, and patted her on the back, assuring her that he forgave her.

His voice sounded a little raspy and Molly worried aloud that he was coming down with something. He assured her that he would be fine as long as he could get out of there and get home, wherever home was.

McGonagall insisted that he and Hermione, too, since she would be his bride, would always have a place at Hogwarts where the job of DADA was waiting for him. Her offer touched him sincerely and he reached out and squeezed her hand in gratitude.

Harry noticed that Snape was watching the bathroom door and was probably wondering what was keeping Hermione so long.

Snape worried that if she didn't hurry, the Judge might change his mind.

The judge cleared his throat and said Professor Snape and Miss Granger would be free to leave as soon as they exchanged vows. Snape suggested that maybe someone should go check on her.

Ginny took the hint and entered the bathroom to inform Hermione they were waiting for her.

Hermione rinsed her mouth out at the sink and chewed on a mint, hoping to get the bad taste out of her mouth. She leaned on Ginny as they walked back into the room and froze when she saw Professor Snape standing there. He was just staring at her as if he didn't know what to do.

Snape started rubbing his sweaty palms against his pant legs. The image of her, at Malfoy Manor, lying half naked, popped into his head. He forced that image from his mind and gave her a curt nod.

Hermione's mind went back to the memories she had seen. Snape was a good man, who fate had been so unkind to. Perhaps in time, they could become friends and raise their child together, as such. Sensing the turmoil inside him and realizing the judge was watching her, Hermione knew her father was right and she had to think of the baby.

She pulled away from Ginny after giving her best friend a brief hug, and slowly crossed the room. When she reached his side, she forced herself to wrap her arms around Professor Snape's waist, laying her head against his shoulder. She was attempting to prove to the judge that she was not afraid of the Professor.

Careful to hide his surprise, he instantly wrapped his arms around her gently and kissed her on top of her head, taking in the honeysuckle smell of her shampoo and the strong smell of mint. _Bloody hell, she smelled so good._ He could feel her trembling and hoped the judge didn't see that she was terrified of him. He had to get her alone and assure her that he would never hurt her like that again. As far as he was concerned, he was never going to touch her again. She could have the baby and he'd help raise it.

The judge was watching this all take place and nodding briefly decided it was time.

'Witnesses take your places, please."

Harry took his place beside Snape and Ginny moved to stand beside Hermione.

"Take each other's hands," the judge said to Snape and Hermione.

Hermione stepped back and placed her small warm hands in his large cold ones. _Why are his hands so cold?_ She wondered briefly, but the judge began reciting the marriage vows with Snape and Hermione repeating what he said.

Just when Hermione thought he was going to pronounce them husband and wife, the judge began speaking of the rules and stipulations of the marriage law. Under the new marriage law, couples must copulate one night a week, no exceptions.

Snape grew alarmed and asked the judge to clarify.

"We at the ministry feel we've lost too much magical blood in the war. We have to start having babies."

Snape pointed out, and Hermione nodded in agreement, that Hermione was already pregnant; surely the stipulation regarding copulation would take effect a short time after the child was born.

The judge was adamant. This could not be waived for anyone. A woman could have sexual intercourse right up until her delivery date. The Ministry was convinced weekly marital sex would bond couples and make it easier for them to coexist together.

Hermione couldn't believe what she was hearing… _were they living in the dark ages_ _, for crying out loud?_ Seeing that the judge was getting angry Hermione blurted, "Fine, we will abide by the copulation rule."

Snape looked around at her quickly. There went his plan to never touch her again. Did she know what she was agreeing to?

"It is Monday afternoon," the judge decreed to the room like he was giving a speech to an entire room full of people, instead of just the handful present, "Copulation will begin tonight and happen at the very least every Monday night."

Hermione shook her head in disbelief, "Of course it does," she said sarcastically. She was beginning to think of Professor Snape and herself as victims…this was her father's doing.

Snape heard the sarcasm in her voice and looked down at her, as he opened his mouth to say something in her defense.

Hermione shook her head and whispered, "No," so he held his tongue.

The Judge pointed his wand at their hands and whispered some words. A magical stream of light came out of the tip of his wand and wound itself around Snape and Hermione's joined hands. For a moment, Hermione thought it was burning them, then the slight burn subsided. The judge informed them that beam of light was a detector that would alert the ministry if they failed to follow the rules regarding copulation.

Hermione looked at Snape and rolled her eyes almost crossing them. Snape had to fight the urge to laugh. _Who was this woman? Where was the little know-it-all, Miss Granger, who must still be terrified of me?_

His attention was brought back to the judge when he said, "I now pronounce you man and wife; you may kiss the bride."

 _Shit!_ He'd forgotten about that part. He looked down nervously at Hermione. She was watching him, expecting him to make the first move. When he didn't, she stood up on her tiptoes and closed her eyes waiting for him to kiss her on her slightly parted lips.

Severus couldn't even remember ever kissing a girl. He lowered his head and gently placed his lips over hers.

Hermione felt her insides quiver as his kiss, at first almost explorative, became passionate and hungry. She came to her senses when she realized she was clinging to him and kissing him with a passion she didn't know existed. She pulled back abruptly and was surprised to see the look of raw hunger in his eyes. She stepped away embarrassed that she had practically pawed the man in front of her friends. His look of hunger was replaced by a smug little grin. She couldn't bear to look at him and see his familiar smirk.

Molly and Ginny rushed up and hugged her. The guys were shaking hands when the judge reminded them that they needed to sign the marriage certificate. He waved his hand and a certificate and quill appeared on the desk next to him.

Snape stepped forward and signed his name in a flourish. Hermione felt the back of her hand sting and cried out in pain. Severus dropped the quill back on the certificate and grabbed Hermione's hand to look at it closer. His name had been cut into the back of her left hand but was now starting to fade, leaving a dark purple circle like a bruise around her ring finger.

"Son of a Bitch!" Snape said, gently rubbing the back of her hand.

"It's okay," Hermione breathed as her hand tingled from his gentle caress.

"Like hell it is" he declared, "I don't want anyone hurting you."

Hermione rolled her eyes at him and had to fight to keep from laughing. It sounded funny coming from him.

Realizing what he just said, he added smartly, "you know what I mean!"

He picked up the quill and handed it to Hermione. She went to step away but he grabbed her right hand and swung around behind her, pressing her up against the desk.

"Please," she whispered, "I don't want to hurt you either."

He leaned down and whispered in her ear, "This is your chance to pay me back for some of the pain I caused you."

She shook her head and whispered, "If you really knew me, you'd know I'm not like that."

He gritted his teeth and hissed into her ear, "Damn it, Granger, sign the fucking certificate!" He felt her flinch at his harsh words and changed his tactic to pleading.

"Please, Hermione," still whispering in her ear. "Please do this before they change their mind and decide to keep us here forever." Still a Slytherin at heart he added, "Think of the baby."

Hermione sighed and taking the pen, signed her name as quick as she could. She saw Snape grit his teeth but he refused to make a sound. As soon as she finished signing, she dropped the pen back on the desk like it burned her fingers and turned back towards him as she wrapped her arms around his waist, and buried her head in his chest. He wrapped his arms around her again and held her gently. She controlled her breathing, net letting on how uncomfortable she was to have him hold her this close. Even though his embrace was comforting, she still felt at odds with the fact that she was clinging so tightly to the same Professor who, while teaching at Hogwarts, never missed an opportunity to belittle her.

Mr. Weasley clapped his hands in glee and said, "Marvelous! Let's get out of here."

"Not yet," the judge called. Hermione felt Snape tense up in her arms and felt a moment of panic until the judge said, "Ladies and Gentlemen, let me be the first to introduce Mr. and Mrs. Severus Snape."

The Judge congratulated them and then departed the room. Mrs. Weasley suggested that they depart for the Burrow. Professor Snape grabbed Hermione's right hand and practically dragged her with him out the door as everyone else brought up the rear.

They stepped outside and Snape stopped to look up at the stars, which were starting to fill the nighttime sky. He honestly thought he'd never see them again. The only reason he was able to was because of her—she had saved him. No one had ever spoken up for him like she had. Dumbledore had, but of course, his protection came with strings attached. As far as he knew, Hermione wanted nothing from him. He remembered her habit of always going out on a limb for Harry, and wondered if that type of dedication would now be bestowed upon him. Would she ever be able to consider him a friend?

He cast a sideways glance at Hermione and saw that she was looking up at the stars too. He groaned inwardly and thought, _Sweet Merlin, I have to be nice to her_. He closed his eyes thinking, _that's not all I have to do. Will she fight me when I lie on top of her tonight? I'll probably have to hold her down, spread her legs and take her._ He felt his cock stir in his pants and felt dirty for getting turned on at the thought of forcing himself on her again. He wouldn't hurt her like last time, but the thought of pinning her arms above her head and fucking her senseless made his balls ache. _Shit! She is pregnant. Will that effect how deep I can put it in her or how hard I can fuck her?_ Bloody Hell, the thought of bending her over his desk…. He felt his cock harden and worried that she would see the tent it was making in his pants. He had to control his thoughts until he could get her home alone. He remembered how tight she had been and wondered if she would feel that good again. He slowly pulled his cape around himself to cover the signs of his obvious erection.

Oblivious to her new husband's sexual fantasies, Hermione wondered how she was going to get through the night. _What if he forces himself on me again? What if he holds me down and only takes pleasure from my body and doesn't even try to give any._ No, she decided right away. She was going to take charge of the situation. He had his way last time; she was going to have it her way tonight.

She reached out and held his hand, squeezing it in hers. "Let's go, Professor."

His cock throbbed, when he heard her call him Professor...it opened up a whole new line of fantasies. Maybe she'd put on a school uniform and he could take her on one of the desks. He chastised himself immediately. _Where are all these thoughts coming from? I've never fantasized about students before._ _Of course, I had access to anti-lust potions, while teaching at Hogwarts._

He regained control over his wayward thoughts and harshly chastised himself. _She's my pregnant wife, damn it, and I need to treat her with respect._


	5. Chapter 5

They Disapparated to the Burrow, and Snape kept hold of Hermione's hand as if he was afraid she were going to disappear, and he would awaken in the freezing cell, realizing it was all a cruel dream. As they entered the Burrow, Molly announced that dinner was waiting and Snape was too tired to argue about his desire to go straight to Hogwarts.

Snape reluctantly released Hermione's hand and followed her into the Burrow's new dining room addition. He'd been here before but their house seemed to be constantly changing, and growing. He stood quietly in the corner with his usual scowl plastered on his face watching everyone laugh and exchange hugs. His look said he dared anyone to try and hug him...if they did, he'd hex them.

Ginny came around with a tray and passed out mugs of butter beer. She insisted that he take one and would not leave until he did. When everyone had their mug, Mr. Weasley cleared his throat to get their attention.

"To Professor Severus Snape, a true hero of the war and the bravest man I have ever known," Mr. Weasley declared as he raised his glass in the air.

"Here, here!" Harry agreed.

Hermione smiled at how uncomfortable her husband looked as everyone drank to Mr. Weasley's toast. This was almost better than all the times she dreamed of punching him. The little half-fake smile he held on his face revealed how uncomfortable he really was. She reveled in it until he looked over and caught her smile. His face hardened and he narrowed his eyes at her. The smile left her face instantly and she turned away towards the stairs. _What an ass! Leave it to my husband to suck the joy out of the room, bloody bastard._ She froze as she realized, even in her thoughts, she was starting to refer to him as her husband. She went up the stairs and changed into an aqua colored skirt and a short-sleeved aqua blue cashmere sweater. She loved how the sweater clinged to her body and made her feel so warm and toasty. She seemed to be having trouble keeping warm. It was still warm outside but for some reason she'd had trouble getting warm lately. She wore a tan, lacy bra underneath, but decided to forego panties. Even though she still thought her stomach looked flat, the way her favorite brand of panties were leaving a mark of her stomach, was proof that she was starting to expand. _Besides, I'll just be taking them off tonight, anyway._ That thought sent chills down her spine. Her hands shook in nervousness as she slipped her shoes on and checked her reflection in the mirror. She just had to get through tonight, with her sanity intact.

Nearly sick to her stomach with dread, she came back downstairs and saw that everyone, including Professor Snape, was gathered around the table. She smiled; Molly must have insisted that he at least sit with everyone, even though he wasn't eating. People all around him were laughing and enjoying life and he sat there looking miserable. It was enough to make her smile again.

Molly offered Snape what appeared to be a hot toddy and assured him that it would soothe his throat and fix his raspy voice. He thanked her and shocked Hermione by sniffing the beverage before taking a drink and declaring that it would do the trick nicely. Hermione had never seen anyone inspect Molly's drinks before consuming them; however, Molly didn't seem concerned and actually beamed at him when he complimented her on the beverage. He still wasn't eating and Hermione and despite her recent trepidation, she became concerned.

She entered the kitchen and the smell of the food made her nauseous. Holding her breath, she prepared him a large plate of food. She knew he must be starving and would have trouble accepting the Weasley's hospitality.

She reentered the dining room and saw that everyone was still seated around the table talking and eating; except for him, of course. He sat there like he wished he were anywhere but here. She sat the plate in front of him and he pushed it away. She slid it back in front of him, while resisting the urge to slap him on the back of the head like he had done to Ron and Harry, so many times, in class. He went to push the plate away again but she held it in place and leaned over to whisper into his ear.

"Eat the damn food," she hissed through gritted teeth, "You need to build your strength back up." She started to pull away and then leaned in further and whispered sweetly, "Don't worry, it's not poisoned, that type of death would be too kind."

He took the plate and picked up the fork she had provided smiling sweetly at her. His overly-sweet smile looked so out of place on him—it was almost creepy.

"You're right, Sweetheart, I do need to build up my strength," he purred as he looked her body up and down suggestively his eyes resting on how the sweater clung to her curves, accentuating her breasts." I still have responsibilities to perform tonight."

Hermione's breath caught in her throat and she could see that he was pleased with her reaction. He began eating with abandon, telling Molly how good her food was and he couldn't remember anything that had satisfied his appetite so fully...so far. He was looking at her when he added the last bit and Hermione could feel her face getting red.

She turned to flee into the kitchen when Snape reached out and snatched her arm pulling her into the chair next to him.

"Where are my manners?" He said slowly in his deep voice. He handed her a roll off his plate and said, "I should be offering you something to satisfy...your needs."

Hermione was fairly shaking with rage at the smug look on his face. She was not going to let this bastard get the best of her. Tearing off a piece of roll, she whispered seductively, "Night's still young, Sweetheart."

His head snapped up in shock and he quickly looked around to assure himself that no one had overheard her. Hermione took the piece she tore off the roll and popped it into her mouth and began chewing slowly. "Mmmm, I forgot how food tastes." The roll hit her stomach and it started to flip.

"Are you okay?" Snape asked seeing her turn green.

Forgetting who she was talking to, she set the roll down and whispered, "morning sickness." She closed her eyes and won the battle to keep the bit of roll in her stomach.

"But it's not morning" He said as if she were too stupid to know that.

"Yes, but your baby doesn't care...he seems intent on punishing me." Her eyes flew open and she looked at him apologetically. "I'm sorry that wasn't fair. I didn't mean to imply that he's only torturing me because he's yours..."

"You know it's a boy?" He asked quietly, staring at her with his dark penetrating eyes.

"No I just don't like calling our baby an 'It'."

He sat back and looked at her not sure why he liked hearing her say, "Our baby." He had resigned himself to dying alone and never having children. _Now look at me,_ he thought incredulously, _I have a beautiful, young wife and a baby on the way._ He continued staring at her as she glared at the roll, like it was the enemy. _Yes, Hermione Granger, no make that Hermione Snape was beautiful, no one could deny that._

Ginny set a bowl of broth in front of Hermione and begged her to try to keep some down. Suddenly his heart went out to the girl. He'd done this to her. She hadn't asked him to impregnate her. He looked down at his plate to hide his face as the realization hit him. He was married to a teenage girl who he had gotten pregnant out of wedlock… _bet the Marauders never saw this coming._ The thought caused him to snort out a brief laugh. He regained control of his wayward thoughts as he felt her looking at him.

He leaned in and whispered, "Tonight when we go back to the castle, I will brew you an anti-nausea potion." Hermione looked at him like he was a complete idiot.

"I brewed a potion that healed your wounds and brought you back from the brink of death. You don't think I'm capable of brewing my own anti-nausea potion?"

"Then why haven't you?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

She looked away quickly, her face coloring in obvious embarrassment; he realized she had tried and failed. "Don't worry sweetheart," he said with a smirk, "you're husband's a potions master and I'll have you eating again in no time." She looked at him and he realized, not only had he called her sweetheart, he had just referred to himself as her husband.

He ignored her stare and began eating again, in earnest. _Well, damn it,_ he thought to himself, _like it or not, I am married to the woman after all. Why shouldn't I make her something so she can eat again? My child needs nourishment. If left up to her limited skills, Hermione and my baby would both starve._ He looked at her in alarm and wondered if it was already affecting the baby.

"We're not going back to the castle tonight." She said quietly. He looked at her in mild alarm, "What did you just say? We have to go back..."

"Good night, children!" Mrs. Weasley was calling as she headed up the stairs. Snape looked around and realized everyone had left them.

"Where did everyone go?"

"They're going to bed; well Harry and Ginny went for a walk. They like going for walks before going to bed. Their still newlyweds and enjoy spending time taking walks."

"I'm not staying here tonight Hermione; I mean we're not," he said in his low, sneering voice.

She made an exasperated sound and explained, "Look no one knew, for certain, that you would be released so soon. Your teaching quarters won't be ready until tomorrow, and I don't feel safe staying in your family home…not right now. The Weasley's have several suites they just built on to give Harry and Ginny a place to live as well as Ron and ..." She stopped and looked away quickly. _Damn it, why did I have to say his name_ …she hated when she thought of him with Lavender Brown.

He heard the way Hermione's voice caught on Ron's name, leaned back in his chair and observed her quietly. She turned from his penetrating gaze, mentally kicking herself for revealing so much to him.

"So you really had a thing for Ron Weasley, is that right?" He asked with a disbelieving sneer.

"Anything Ron and I had is over now. He's just one more thing I lost because of..." he flinched, "the war," she added lamely.

He was staring at her through hooded lids and she was getting nervous under his scrutiny. She didn't know what he was thinking, and it was making her feel unhinged.

"Did I hurt you?" He asked barely above a whisper.

At first she didn't understand what he meant. Realization dawned and she stared down at her hands not sure what he wanted her to say. Why was he asking her this? Why did he care anyway?

"Please look at me, Hermione. Did I do any physical damage to you that night? I mean I know it must have been painful…"

"I don't want to talk about this," she blurted as she started to rise from her seat.

"Please Hermione," he said reaching out to grab her shoulder, and gently pushed her back down into her seat.

She stared at him as if he were growing sprouts out of his ears. "Of course it was painful. How do you remember it happening? Like consensual sex? The way I remember it, you shoved you dick inside me and fucked me hard until you got up and left me behind at the mercy of Bellatrix, to do whatever she wanted with me."

Snape scoffed and waved her last comment away. "Dobby was waiting to get you. I called him to get you out of there. I was not leaving you to that bitch's fate. If you recall, she was the one who forced me to...finish...inside you. It was almost as if she knew." He looked away as if suddenly uncomfortable with their conversation.

 _He was the one who brought it up,_ she thought as she waited for him to look at her again. "Of course she knew. She put her hand on my stomach and told Narcissa I was ripe to bear a child. Then she dragged Draco over and tried to force him into raping me."

"Hermione, I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"I was a virgin, Damn it. You tore my insides and put a baby inside me. I always thought my first time would be with…"

"Ronald Weasley?" He said dryly.

"With someone who loved me and would be gentle the first time, not rip me apart." She saw how uncomfortable he looked and placed her hand on his knee. "Look, I agree with my Dad, you saved me that night. Draco's mother cried about not wanting her grandchild to have mud in his veins, or Bellatrix would have forced him into raping me. She even threatened to call Greyback in to do it." There were tears running down Hermione's face, but she seemed to not be aware of them as Snape stared at her in horror of what she had went through. "I know you had no choice. Voldemort would have let Nagini devour us both. You also could have left me there as Nagini's lunch and begged Voldemort's forgiveness later."

She looked away and Snape was amazed that he'd never truly realized how forgiving Hermione was. Lily had never forgiven him, for his crime, which was a lot less than what he had done to this amazing woman sitting beside him.

"Bellatrix was intent on causing me pain and was looking for someone stupid enough to risk knocking me up, as she put it," Hermione said quietly as she stared back down at her hands.

"So Bellatrix already knew that if I uhm...inside you, I'd get you pregnant?" Hermione nodded her head in acknowledgement.

"That stupid bitch;" Snape snarled, "That's why she forced me to stay inside you when she knew I was close to…uhmm, you know."

Hermione wiped the tears off her face with the back of her hand. She wanted to laugh at how uncomfortable Severus Snape seemed to be with the word, "cum." It suddenly occurred to her that she may have been his first time, as well—she certainly wasn't going to ask him that.

She pulled up her sleeve and showed him the scaring on the inside of her arm. "She left me with this little souvenir, to remember her by." Snape grabbed her left arm and pulled it closer, so he could see it clearly. He closed his eyes for a moment and pressed his lips against her arm. He finally opened his eyes and proceeded to press a kiss onto each of the letters until he had kissed every letter in the word, "MUDBLOOD," that Bellatrix had carved into Hermione's arm. The feeling of his lips on her arm sent tingles through her entire body and it made her think about the kiss they'd shared earlier that evening.

After a few moments he released her arm and said, "Please forgive me for saying this, Hermione, I regret that you had to go through so much torture that night, but I don't regret that you're having my baby. You're giving me something that I never would have had a chance to experience. If the Marauders could only see me now, they'd eat their hearts out. I have a young, beautiful wife that is pregnant with my child. What? Don't shake your head. You're very beautiful. Weasley was a fool not to snatch you up when he had the chance. It's too late now, though, you're all mine." He stared at her so possessively that it scared her. Ignoring her discomfort he said casually, "What about Potter?"

"What about him?" She asked, slightly confused as to where this was going.

"You were always with him and every time I saw you two together, you were hugging him." He continued.

"No I wasn't" she huffed and narrowed her eyes at him. _Where was he going with this?_

"Why didn't you end up with him? He loved you. I saw it in his Occlumency training." He leaned towards her, "I saw every memory he had of you. You were the best thing to ever happen to him. You were always there for him, always had his back, and were the brightest of the trio. Hell, I wish Lily had been half as good a friend to me as you were to her son. No, Harry's also a fool for not recognizing your value."

Hermione looked at him through jaded eyes. Who was this man and what had he done with the Professor who had made her life hell?

"Value? Were you recognizing my value all those years you belittled me and made me feel like shit in your Potions class? You went out of your way to make my life a living…"

He interrupted, "Even if you were the brightest student I've ever taught, I couldn't show you any favoritism. Besides, it pissed me off that a Gryffindor could outshine the Slytherin's in Potions. No matter what I taught, there you were with your hand up, knowing all the answers. Merlin…" He ran a hand through his black hair in frustration, "I wanted to strangle you, when you knew everything about werewolves. I was trying to force everyone do research on the subject and you raised your hand and gave all the answers."

"You were just trying to get us all to figure out that Professor Lupin was a Werewolf so he'd get fired." She said, glaring at him.

He snorted, "I saved you sorry ass when I came out of the entrance to the Shrieking Shack and saw that he was coming for you." He looked at her sincerely and said, "By the way, thank you for what you said at my trial. I thought I was dead, for certain, until you started talking about how I've always kept you safe." His voice softened and he smiled at the memory. "No one, besides Dumbledore, has ever taken up for me before." He looked at her abruptly, "Can you ever forgive me for what I did to you? I need to be able to touch you again without you feeling like I'm forcing myself on you. I want you to feel free to give yourself to me without fear."

Hermione was suddenly nervous with all this talk of her giving herself to him freely.

"You must be exhausted, let me clean up our dishes." She said gathering the plates.

"I know how to wash a dish, Miss Granger…you didn't answer the question."

"Snape!" She said emphatically.

"What?"

"My name...it's Snape now and I'd appreciate if you would use it, or Hermione, when you address me."

He narrowed his eyes at her, and she closed her eyes to control her emotions.

"Look, I'm sorry; another side effect to the first stage of pregnancy is bitchiness."

"You've always been a little bit of a bitch, Hermione," he said smoothly, drawling out her name.

She glared at him and stomped into the kitchen with their dishes. He had the nerve to follow her into the kitchen and watch her as she washed the dishes. She felt like throwing a plate at him but resisted the urge.

He watched her with a smirk. She was kind of hot when she was angry. He meant what he said about her being his now. His mind had already jumped ahead to how he was going to take her tonight; on the bed, the floor, hell…he'd take her up against the wall, if she wanted. His eyes traveled up her bare legs and wanted to continue up under her skirt.

She looked over at him and was alarmed at the look of raw lust on his normally hardened face. She turned away nervously, almost dropping a plate. She closed her eyes and tried to control her breathing. Her breath, however, caught in her throat when she felt him come up behind her. He reached around her and took the clean plate out of her hands and set it on the counter. He proceeded to place an arm on each side of her and lean forward, pinning her between him and the counter.

He felt Hermione trembling and was trying to think of a way to assure her that he was not going to hurt her. He nuzzled her neck and she leaned her head giving him better access to her neck and moaned.

His hot breath felt so good on her neck. That coupled with his deep, sexy voice made her tremble inside as he said, "I'm not going to hurt you Gra...Hermione, or at least I'll try not to."

 _Oh god he was talking about the sex they still had to have tonight._ She didn't realize that he'd unhooked her bra until she felt it release and instantly felt his hands cupping her breasts underneath her sweater. He began teasing her nipples and she groaned in pleasure. She instinctively held her arms slightly away from her body, giving him free access to her breasts. He groaned and pressed his hardness against her bum making her entire body tingle. She sighed and leaned back against him. Snape hoped this meant she was not going to fight him when he had to fulfill the stipulation of the marriage contract.

"I want to make love to you tonight, Mrs. Snape and make up for the first time…if I can. I don't want you to be afraid of me. After this baby, I plan to put many more inside you." _Merlin,_ he thought, _what made me think to say that?_ Although he had to admit thinking of putting babies inside her made his groin ache. He had to get her upstairs or he was going to take her right there in the kitchen.

Realizing there was no way to put it off any longer, she took his hand and extinguished some of the candles in the kitchen, before leading him upstairs to the suite Molly had prepared for them. It took two flights and one long corridor to get to their room. Snape's heart was pounding in his chest from anticipation. The only other time he'd been with a woman was, well, with her...but he reasoned that really didn't count. He'd been waiting for Voldemort to kill them at any time and she wasn't exactly willing, fighting him the entire time. The only thing he could remember, which made him feel like a heartless bastard every time he did, was how incredibly tight she was and how amazing it felt when he finally came inside her. Merlin's balls! He couldn't wait to be inside her again.

Hermione led him into the room and he closed the door behind him. He looked at the door and momentarily thought about erecting a silencing charm but remembered that his wand hadn't been returned to him. He started to speak and noticed Hermione was standing in the middle of the room as if trying to make a decision. His heart rate quickened with desire.

Licking his dry lips he said, "Hermione, take off your clothes and lay on the bed. I'll try to make it as quick and painless as possible."

"No." Hermione said flatly walking over to where he stood by the sofa.

"Please Hermione," He whispered, "We have to do this before midnight. It's almost midnight and I can already feel the burn on my hand where the band of light joined us. The burning sensation will only get worse if we don't do this before midnight."

"I know," she said already feeling the slight burn, as well. "I know we have to have sex, but not like last time." She put her hands on his chest and pushed him back gently. He felt the sofa behind him and sat down. His breath caught in his throat when she climbed on top of him straddling his lap. His hands immediately slid under her skirt, gripped her bum and pulled her higher onto his lap. She gave a small gasp and pulled his arms away from her.

"No, don't touch me yet. Please, let me have it my way, this time." She whispered hoarsely.

He'd been surprised to feel her bare ass in his hands and reasoned that she must be wearing one of those thong things some women wore. His cock began throbbing in his pants as she whispered, "This time I make the rules. You don't touch me with your hands unless I tell you to."

He bit his bottom lip and nodded his agreement, holding back the urge to start tearing at her clothes. She was sitting high on his waist looking down into his face. She kissed his open mouth gently and he returned the kiss keeping his hands to his sides. She pulled away and looked down at his face again. She was fighting an internal battle because it was so hard for her to look into his eyes and not see the hateful, vengeful teacher who had made her life hell in his class. She pushed that from her mind, thinking that if she could drive him crazy and make him beg her to let him have her, it would give her a small measure of sweet justice. She reached under her sweater and removed her bra from one arm at a time while keeping the sweater on and not revealing her breasts to him. Snape closed his eyes and pressed his hips up towards her. She felt his hardness pressed against her and had to fight to control her breathing. Feeling him press against her was doing things to her that she didn't realize was possible…suddenly it felt like she had an itch inside her that only he could scratch.

"No," She said again. "You are going to sit still and I am going to ride you and set the pace."

His head fell back against the sofa, his black hair fanning out and he moaned in anticipated pleasure. Hearing him moan made Hermione grow wet between her legs. Oh god, what was happening to her? She smiled thinking of how she was going to torture him with her body. _Yes…I'm going to try and prolong this until he is mad with desire. I'll make him beg._

She slid back off him some and he looked up at her with panic. "Unbuckle your pants and slide them down please."

Snape hurriedly reached between them and fumbled with his belt cursing at the zipper he was struggling with. He managed to get them zipped down and slightly lifted his hips as he hooked his thumbs in his shorts and pulled both his pants and briefs down far enough free his cock; which sprang up towards her body. He put his hands on her hips and she quietly ordered him to put his hands back down on the couch. She could feel him trembling with the effort of not moving, especially with her body so close to his. She positioned herself back over his waist.

"Take off your panties Hermione," he whispered hoarsely.

"I'm not wearing any panties, sweetheart." She felt his body tremble beneath her. _Let the torture begin_ , she thought smugly.

Snape moaned and dropped his head back on the sofa again, lost in the thought that he had been downstairs with her and she had been without panties the whole time. God if he'd known that he'd probably would've taken her right in front of the sink. She pressed her herself against his hardness and he instinctively put his hands on her hips.

"Severus, please follow the rules," she whispered. He dropped his hands again thinking he could cum just from hearing her call him by his first name.

Hermione put her hands on his shoulders to keep her steady and began sliding her clit back and forth on his hardened shaft. She couldn't believe how amazing it felt to rub his cock up and down her slit making her pussy almost dripping wet.

Professor Snape was moaning like he was in pain. He sounded like he was close to tears when he begged, "please, Hermione, please you're killing me."

"Please what, baby?" She purred.

"Please, let me fuck you. Merlin, you're driving me crazy. I have to be inside you soon or I'm going to lose my mind."

"You should have been nicer to me in your classroom, Professor."

He dug his fingers into the couch on either side of him when she called him Professor. It made him think of her as his student and him the teacher. He could picture himself bending her over a desk and he trembled in his need for relief. Merlin, she was driving him crazy.

"I'm sorry, Hermione, I shouldn't have been such an ass to you. Now, please, please stop punishing me and give me what I need or I'm going to lose my mind."

"Admit that I'm just as smart as you."

"Yes, yes, you're smarter than me. Now, please, let me fuck you Hermione, before I lose control."

Thinking she had teased him enough, she arched herself up and began the slow process of forcing his shaft inside her. She ignored his cries of pleasure, only concentrating on the task of lifting herself up a little and pressing herself back down until he was completely buried inside her. She began riding him in a slow steady rhythm, basking in the realization that it hadn't been as painful as she thought it would be. _Shit, his cock feels so amazing inside me, fuck, he feels so good._

"Talk to me Professor; tell me how good my pussy feels on your cock. Please, I need to hear this," she begged quietly, still riding him slowly, gasping when he lifted his hips slightly and she felt his large cock fill her completely.

Hearing her call him Professor again almost made him lose control. He gritted his teeth and growled telling her how good she made him feel. She felt herself get wetter the more he whispered about the pleasure she was giving him and that he wanted to fuck her all night long. After a minute of teasing him with the slow pace she had set, she removed her sweater, but insisted he could only look at her breasts…not touch them. Unable to control herself, she leaned her head back and whispered, "Oh Merlin, your cock feels so good inside me. It is doing amazing things inside my body."

Something snapped in Snape. The pace she had set was torturing him and hearing her say his cock was doing amazing things to her body drove him temporarily insane. He threw his arms around her waist and, holding her in place, began thrusting quickly in and out of her. Hermione cried out and laid her head on his shoulder, overcome with immense pleasure. She gave up her plan to torture him and began begging him not to stop even asking him to thrust harder. He couldn't get a good thrust underneath her and quickly flipped her over on the couch so he was on top of her holding her down and thrusting hard, back and forth inside her.

Instantly, in her mind, she was back on the mansion floor and he was hurting her. She began struggling against him and with panic in her voice as she pleaded, "Please, not like this, please it's too soon, you're scaring me…"

He quickly withdrew, grabbed her around the waist and flipped her over so fast she was on all fours on the couch and he was back inside her in, with one thrust. He bunched her skirt up around her waist as he placed his hands on her hips to hold her in place as he continued thrusting his hips back and forth. It took her a second to get her bearings and then the feeling of him taking her in this position was so amazing that she could only cry out in pleasure. He was so deep inside her now, reaching that sweet spot deep inside her that needed to be scratched.

He kept talking to her like she had asked, "It feels so good to be inside your tight little pussy," and "gods you're so wet, you're making me want to cum inside you." She loved that he didn't mind talking dirty, when he was in the throes of passion. She was moaning now and making almost guttural animal sounds as he fucked her unmercifully...she loved it. He reached around her and began stimulating her clit with his fingers as he continued thrusting his hips like a piston on overdrive.

Harry and Ginny who had just returned from their walk had just passed outside Snape and Hermione's door when they heard Professor Snape call out, "You want me to stop, baby? You want me to stop or keep fucking you. You like my big cock inside you, don't you…don't you…you hot little witch?"

Then they heard Hermione practically screaming, "Don't stop fucking me, please! Oh shit, Severus, fuck me harder, please...I need this."

"You love my cock, don't you?" Snape snarled loudly.

"Oh gods, yes, I love your fuckin cock!" She cried out.

"Cum for me, Witch...wet my balls." Snape hissed loudly.

Harry was routed to the spot and was horrified when he heard a sound on the other side of the door that was obviously Hermione having an orgasm. He glanced over at Ginny, who had a horrified look on her face which he felt must reflect his own. He quickly pulled out his wand and put a silencing spell on the door. All went quiet out in the hall, however they knew, inside the room those two were probably still going at it. He wanted to block out the thought of Professor Snape fucking Hermione and making her beg for it, which she had obviously been doing. Ginny giggled and Harry shook his head in disbelief.

"Merlin's beard, I want to scrub my mind with soap and water."

Ginny smirked, took him by the hand and leading him to their suite whispered seductively, "I've got a better idea, let's see if you can make me scream like that."

Harry smiled devilishly and promised, "Oh, I know I can."

Inside the Snape's bedroom, Hermione cried out, "I'm coming" and arched her back as the spasms rocked her body.

Snape cried out in sweet agony as her muscles closed around his cock, her strong climax threatening to squeeze his cock off. He started pounding into her even harder before her spasms even subsided. The sensation was too intense, he was trying to prolong this for her; however, he knew he was fighting a losing battle. He squeezed his eyes so tight he saw stars as he cried out and emptied himself inside her. He collapsed on top of her, but was careful not to put his full weight on her.

Catching his breath and regaining some of his composure, he scooped her up into his arms and carried her into the bathroom. He sat her down on her feet and leaned her against him as he turned on the shower and allowed the water to reach the right temperature. When he was satisfied that the water was warm enough, he removed her skirt and helped her into the shower before stripping off his clothes and joining her. He took a sponge and scrubbed her back and then telling her to turn around; he did the same thing to her front, paying special attention to her breasts. She blushed as she took the sponge from him and told him to turn around so she could do the same to him. She didn't call attention to the scars that covered his torso, since she was grateful that he hadn't commented on hers. She always felt self-conscious when she stared in the mirror and saw the scars from Dolohov's curse and Bellatrix's knife. When he turned around to face her, curiosity got the best of her. She gripped his cock in her right hand and began to stroke it. His cock sprung back to life, and he tried to gently push her away; suddenly embarrassed that he was so exposed to her.

"Please, I just want to touch it, I've never seen a man's penis before." She whispered, softly. He nodded and let her touch his balls as well. He gasped when she dropped to her knees and drew his cock into her mouth and began to gently suck on it.

"No, Hermione you don't have to do that," he whispered, not really wanting her to stop.

"Please, just let me touch it for a minute." She replied before sliding his hardened shaft back inside her mouth to see if she could take him down her throat. She was pleased to see that she could override her gag reflex and take most of him into her mouth.

Snape stood still and looked up at the ceiling while she did delicious things to his cock with her tongue. He fought the urge to thread his fingers in her hair and fuck her mouth. _Oh shit, she's really good at this,_ he thought as she picked up her pace and he could feel his balls tighten.

"Please, Hermione, I'm going to cum." He whimpered, as he fought the urge to spill his seed in the back of her throat.

She stood and he thought she was just going to stroke him until he came. However, she put her hands on his shoulders, wrapped one leg around his waist and then using his shoulders as leverage lifted herself up and wrapped her other leg around his waist. He placed his hands under her bum, to support her weight. She centered herself on his cock and squeezing her legs around his waist, forced his cock back inside her body. Snape cried out at the sudden pleasure as her body gripped his cock. He marveled at how wonderful she felt in his arms as he stood there in the middle of the shower and fucked the hell out of her. Like before, she cried out for him to keep fucking her, begging him not to stop. She pressed her lips to his and forced him to open his mouth slightly so she could slip her tongue inside. He moaned, and then slid his tongue inside her mouth and she promptly began sucking on it. He felt his balls ache and knew he was close to coming again. He pressed his entire cock inside her, positive the head of his cock was touching her cervix and came in her, crying out her name and struggling to stand with her weight in his arms.

She removed her legs from around his waist and slid down to stand on her own two feet.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly, "I just wanted to feel you inside me one more time."

Shaking with exertion, he looked down into her eyes and whispered hoarsely, "Baby, don't ever be sorry for that."

Smiling to herself that she now had him calling her 'baby,' she turned off the water and grabbed a towel to help dry him. He assisted her in drying off, as well, and saw that she was getting tired and starting to stumble. He looked in her overnight bag and picked out what looked like a sleep shirt and placed it over her head, helping her get her arms through the short sleeves. Then he put on a clean pair of his shorts from his overnight bag and climbed into bed pulling her next to him. He'd never slept in the same bed with anyone before, but he felt so cold and craved her warmth. She turned to face him and pressed herself up against him, hot as an oven—she felt so good in his arms.

Hermione fell asleep quickly but Snape lay there a few more minutes before drifting off. He was thinking about how quickly his life had changed. His cock tingled at the memory of what had just occurred in the shower, because she wanted him one more time. He was pleased that their forced copulation had been so incredible. Apparently, sex wasn't going to be a problem for them...he'd definitely be willing to do that again. Perhaps he'd even locate a book that gave instructions on how to pleasure a woman, just as she had pleasured him with her hot little mouth, in the shower. He felt his cock stir and had to control his thoughts so he could relax and go to sleep. As far as he was concerned, next Monday couldn't come fast enough. He fell asleep thinking about how blessed he was that Hermione, the brightest witch of her age, was his wife and pregnant with his child.


	6. Chapter 6

Snape awoke during the night and slipped out of the bed, careful not wake Hermione. He had the perfect potion for nausea and thought he could use the Weasley's Floo to contact a house elf at Hogwarts, have them retrieve it from his stockroom and send it back through the Floo. He slipped on his trousers and proceeded down the stairs.

He had managed to make contact with a house elf named, Winky. She was more than willing to grab the aforementioned potion for him. Once that was accomplished, he crept back upstairs, set the potion on the bedside table, removed his trousers and slipped back into bed next to his sleeping wife. She rolled over and threw an arm and leg around him. He chuckled softly as he pulled her against him.

Snape awoke to sunlight streaming into the room and for a brief moment couldn't remember where he was. He was laying flat on his back looking up at a strange ceiling. Hearing a small sigh to his left, he looked over and saw Hermione Granger...no make that Hermione Snape lying next to him. She was on her side facing him with her hands tucked up under her head watching him. He scowled and she laughed softly.

"What?" He asked his voice sounding a little rough from screaming out her name a few times last night. He felt himself blushing when he thought about how he became completely unhinged last night. She was incredible. He was wondering if he was going to have to wait a whole week to experience that again when she climbed on top of him and straddled his waist.

"You look so sweet and helpless when you sleep, then you wake up and you're Mr. Grumpy again. She furrowed her eyebrows when she said this and he scowled at her.

"I am not Mr. Grumpy, maybe Mr. Serious or Mr..." He pushed down his briefs, grabbed her hips and slid her down further on his waist so that his stiff cock was making contact with the junction between her legs. "Mr. wants to fuck you again."

Hermione looked into his dark eyes and bit her bottom lip. Hearing his lovely voice declaring that he wanted to make love to her again caused her cunt to ache with need. How was it possible that yesterday evening she was dreading this and now…she couldn't get enough? She began rubbing her slit on his morning hardness and leaned her head back and moaned.

 _Shit! She's going to let me have her again_. He reached down and thumbed his erection up so she could slide down onto it. He moaned when he felt her body taking him in entirely, wrapping his cock in her hot wetness. She was so tight; it almost hurt to be this deep inside her. She began moving up and down on him. He moaned in pleasure and raised his hips in time with her thrusts.

She was breathing heavy now and whimpering. He knew she must still be tired. He sat up quickly and wrapped his arms around her, lifting her up and down on him so she wasn't doing all the work. She kept crying out how good he felt inside her, it was driving him mad. He kicked his briefs off his legs, pulled her sleep shirt off her and tossed it to the side.

"Hermione I want to roll you over and be on top." He whispered hoarsely.

She froze and her breathing quickened. She didn't say no, so he gently rolled her over and began gently moving back and forth inside her. She was looking away like she wanted to be somewhere else. He was trying not to lose himself in his pleasure and ignore hers.

"Hermione look at me" he whispered.

She looked up at him and he thought he saw tears forming in her eyes.

"Look at me Hermione and see how much pleasure you're giving me. No one has ever made me feel this good. You are so beautiful and you feel so amazing."

His confession must have convinced her that he wasn't going to hurt her. She started to respond, moving her hips slightly underneath him. He asked her to bring her legs up and wrap them around his waist. He didn't do it for her because he didn't want to frighten her. Back at the mansion he had pulled her legs up and pinned her knees against his upper chest giving him access to thrust into her fully. He shoved that thought out of his head, hoping she wasn't thinking the same thing. She slowly brought her legs up around his waist and wrapped her arms around his neck. He changed his angle of entry a little to allow himself deeper access and began thrusting a little harder. She became a wild animal beneath him, meeting his thrusts and demanding that he thrust harder. She entangled her fingers in his hair, pulling him down to kiss her. He collapsed on top of her and began fucking her with abandon as he devoured her lips. She growled and moaned against his mouth pulling her hands out of his hair and raking her nails down his back, before gripping his shoulders. He felt her convulse inside and his mouth muffled her guttural scream as she came around his cock making it feel like she was going to break it in two. He cried just as loudly a few seconds later when he emptied his seed inside her. He collapsed on top of her and tried to roll off, but she said, "Don't" and wrapped her arms and legs around him, keeping him in place on top of her.

"Hermione, we need to..."

"Please, just lie on top of me for a moment. I want to feel you on top of me without being afraid. I've had so many nightmares." Her sigh came out sounding like part sob and he wrapped his arms around her trying to put some of the weight on his arms instead of on her. After a few minutes he shifted his weight to his left side and propped his head up on his arm and looked at her. Merlin, she was beautiful. She lay next to him completely naked. With his right hand he reached over and touched her check. She was looking at him with an apologetic smile. He gently ran his hand down her neck and around her right breast causing her to arch her back and moan. He continued down her body until he got to her stomach. He could see now that her belly looked a little swollen. He rubbed his hand gently over her abdomen and traced her body with his hand up her left breast and up to the left side of her throat. He kept repeating this ending at her abdomen. He leaned down and placed kisses on her stomach making her giggle.

"Sorry, I'm ticklish."

He laid his head against her stomach careful not to put too much weight on her and began whispering things to the baby. Hermione looked down and saw his black hair fanned out just below her breasts and could hear him tell the baby he loved him and would always be there for him. It brought tears to her eyes. She reached down and started running her hands through his hair. Who was this man? Where had the grumpy professor gone?

Hermione looked over at the clock and said, "Oh my goodness, is that the time?"

Snape looked up and saw that it was indeed almost ten a.m.

"I haven't slept this well since I first found out I was pregnant."

"You're welcome." Snape said with a smirk as he lay his head back down on his pillow.

She rolled her eyes at him, "We have to get dressed and go downstairs. We have lots to do today. He reached out to grab her but she was too fast for him. She jumped up and stepped away from the bed, out of his reach.

"Or, we could just stay in bed all day and catch up on our sleep," he purred.

She smiled at him, her eyes dancing with mischief, "As much as I would like to sex you the entire day, I have to be able to walk. I don't want my friends downstairs thinking you're trying to shag me to death."

Snape threw his head back and laughed really hard, eliciting a laugh from her. She couldn't ever remember hearing him laugh.

She went back and sat down on the edge of the bed. "You should laugh more often. You have a nice laugh."

He looked at her, with a small smile and sighed. "I haven't had a whole lot to laugh about in my life."

She felt her heart ache when she realized that was true. "Hopefully, I'll give you lots to laugh about. I mean, you know, make you happy."

He leaned up and nuzzled her on the neck. "You've already made me happy."

She moaned and leaned into him. His lips found hers and he pulled her on top of him kissing her tenderly. She moaned and went to straddle his lap again.

"No, no, Hermione your right." He said rolling her over and moving away from her. "I can't have people think I crippled you on our first night together." She laughed at the thought and thinking about what he'd just said he began laughing too.

He spotted the potion on the bedside table and remembered his nighttime errand. He snatched it up and handed it to her. She uncorked it and smelled it, wrinkling up her nose.

"Good girl, always smell a potion before ingesting it...at least I taught you something."

"What is it?" She asked as she smelled it again.

"It is my personal cure for morning sickness. Drink up and let's go feed my baby."

Hermione laughed and swallowed the potion. It smelled terrible; however, it made her stomach feel wonderful. She smiled and leaned down to place a small kiss on his smiling lips. "Good thing I married a Potion's Master." Snape grabbed her around the waist and gave her a proper kiss.

"Yuck, I forgot how terrible the potion tastes," he said with a small chuckle as she playfully smacked him on the shoulder. Snape donned his favorite teaching suit again as Hermione headed to the bathroom calling out that she needed a few moments to make herself look more presentable. Snape called out that she was beautiful just as she was. She threw him a grateful smile as she entered the bathroom, telling him to go downstairs and snare her some breakfast so she could try out his cure for morning sickness.

* * *

Snape entered the kitchen with a spring in his step and saw Harry sitting at the table looking at him with a stupid grin on his face. Snape came to a halt and his eyes narrowed immediately at Harry, wondering what he was up to.

"Don't you have some place to be, Potter?"

"Nope, I've got the whole day off." Harry was still smiling at him which unnerved him a little.

"Out with it, Potter, what is it?"

"Oh, nothing, I just want to recommend in the future that you might want to put a silencing charm on your door before you have your wife begging you to not stop…"

Snape rushed over to Harry and leaned over him threateningly, "Why you little…don't you dare tell Hermione…"

"Tell Hermione, what?"

Hermione walked in behind Snape and he swung around to face her. He grabbed her by the elbow and tried to rush her out of the kitchen when Harry called out, "Oh nothing, just a reminder to put up a silencing charm before your husband bangs the hell out of you…that's all."

Snape froze when he felt Hermione stiffen. He was going to kill Potter.

"You heard us?" She said looking at Harry and then turned to her husband, "You didn't erect a silencing charm?"

"With what?" He replied. "I didn't have my wand."

"I have it upstairs," Hermione suddenly remembered, "I've hung onto it since the night at the boathouse."

Ginny came into the room pulling her hair back into a pony tail; she was wearing a healer's robe.

"What's going on, what are you guys talking about?"

"Oh nothing," Hermione said sweetly, "Harry was just letting us know that my husband was giving everyone a lesson on how to make your wife beg for it last night."

Snape gaped at the women, he couldn't believe they were discussing this so freely.

"Yes, thank you very much. Harry and I decided to go back to our suite and try to outdo you. Of course we put up a silencing charm first…no need to frighten the neighbors."

"Please tell me we are not discussing our sex life with…"

"Relax Severus, they're our friends."

Snape pointed at Harry and snarled, "They're not my friends."

Harry placed his hand on his chest, "Oh Mate, you cut me to the quick. I thought we were pals now…best of buds."

Snape glowered at him and Hermione stepped in front of him blocking his view. His gaze immediately softened. She placed her arms around his neck and kissed him gently on the lips. He closed his eyes and returned her kiss with a soft moan.

"Okay, it was bad enough to hear it…we don't need to see it." Harry proclaimed.

Snape pulled his face away from hers with a sigh of frustration.

Hermione just laid her head against his chest and said, "You guys really know how to suck the fun out of a room."

"Speaking of fun," Harry said pulling Ginny onto his lap."I heard you have an appointment with Madam Pomfrey today. She's chomping at the bit to get you on the right potions to ensure a safe delivery. This will be the first baby born at Hogwarts and she can't wait to see the little guy on her whatchamacallit that lets her see babies while they are still inside you." He looked at Ginny and she provided the name of the magical device.

"As you know, I'm interning with Madam Pomfrey this summer." Ginny said, "I'm hoping to continue interning during my last year of Hogwarts and then move on to a position at St. Mungo's when I graduate."

"We were hoping to have the first baby born at Hogwarts," Ginny said looking down into Harry's eyes.

"Second baby born is not bad. We'll let Hermione work out all the kinks and then your delivery will go smoothly."

"Wait, wait, are you saying?" Hermione asked breathlessly.

When Ginny nodded, Hermione squealed and hugged her friend.

"Wait, how long have you been married? How far along is she?" Snape asked looking like he was going to start counting on his fingers.

"Severus!" Hermione chastised him.

"Well, you know people are going to ask the same thing about you. They'll take the date of our marriage and then the date of our baby's birth and do the math."

"Oh that's so old fashioned Severus; nobody cares about that these days. They only care that you are married when you have a baby."

"Really? Have you seen the morning paper? I happened to glance at it when I came in and found Potter here waiting to tell me how impressed he was with my sexual prowess."

"Hey," Harry frowned, "I didn't mention anything about prowess and Ginny is barely two months pregnant and we've been married for three."

Snape rolled his eyes as if he could care less.

Hermione had picked up the paper and grown strangely silent.

"What does it say, Hermione?" Ginny asked crossing over to her friend and peering over her shoulder at the paper.

"That bitch Rita just doesn't know when to stop." Ginny said through gritted teeth.

Snape reached for the paper but Ginny snatched it out of Hermione's hand and began reading it out loud.

 _I, Rita Skeeter, have just received the scoop of the millennium. It appears that Professor Snape who was cleared on all charges, yesterday, married a former student,_ _Miss Hermione Granger, at a secret ceremony, with only a few friends being invited and her own parents snubbed. You'll remember that Miss Granger spent the winter bunking down with the famous Harry Potter and gained notoriety for helping to defeat You-know-who. Rumor has it that Professor Snape had been giving Miss Granger private lessons before the final battle. An unnamed source remembers seeing Miss Granger comfort Professor Snape on the night of the war. The Ministry would only verify that Miss Granger is credited with saving Professor Snape's life by her quick thinking and expert medical care, when he was attacked by that nasty snake. Before all you ladies weep over the fact that Professor Snape is no longer a bachelor and hope their marriage will fail, you may want to reconsider. I have it on good authority that one of those 'Private Sessions' resulted in Professor Snape impregnating his teenage girlfriend. Yesterday's ceremony was nothing more than the Professor doing his duty to his mistress and his unborn child. Although there has been talk that Harry Potter is actually the father and Professor Snape married her out of gratitude for saving his life, I have not been able to confirm this. Your faithful servant reached out to Miss Granger's best friend, Draco Malfoy, but he would only say that he wishes the best for the happy couple. Despite his well wishes, I, Rita Skeeter learned from a Ministry employee that Draco Malfoy had petitioned to be married to Miss Granger, under the Ministries new Marriage Law; however, in true Slytherin style, Severus Snape beat him to it. For more information on the Ministries new law, see page 3._

"Can you believe the nerve of that woman?" Ginny huffed, slamming the paper down on the table.

Hermione, had grown strangely quiet and dropped down into one of the kitchen chairs.

Snape hurried over to her, "Hermione, baby, are you okay. I'll take care of Malfoy, don't you worry..."

"No, I'm glad he said that. It could have been worse. He could have told the truth." She squeezed Snape's hand. "I'd rather everyone think I was meeting you privately for secret lessons…sounds kind of romantic."

Snape sat down, pulled Hermione onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her. She laid her head against his chest and wrapped her arms around him.

Ginny got up and threw a quick breakfast together. She produced platters of scrambled eggs, bacon, scones with butter and a pot of steaming tea. Hermione slid back into her chair, put some eggs on her plate and tasted them. Snape breathed a sigh of relief as she moaned in pleasure and began piling her plate. Harry and Ginny both stared at her in disbelief until she explained that Severus had provided her with an amazing potion.

"That's me...the amazing Potion's Master," Snape purred as he gently rubbed her back.

"Oh, my gosh, did you just tell a joke?" Ginny gasped.

Snape graced her with one of his trademark sneers, "I taught potions before you were even born."

Harry's eyebrows rose and he fought to hide his smirk.

As if reading his mind, Snape hissed, "Not one word, Potter. I don't need a wand to hex you over an 'old man' comment."

"Well, there is something to be said for experience," Hermione purred as she rubbed Snape's leg under the table. Ginny's mouth dropped open at that comment, prompting Snape to raise an eyebrow at her. Her face flushed and she giggled as she passed him a plate. Harry stared at him with narrowed eyes. Snape ignored the younger man's glare and dug in, declaring that Ginny was an excellent cook.

After breakfast, Ginny waved her wand and the dishes gathered in the sink and began cleaning themselves. She turned to them and announced, "I'm headed in to Hogwarts to assist Madam Pomfrey with your examination, Hermione. You guys are welcome to Floo over with me."

* * *

Hermione laid on one of the Hogwarts hospital beds, wearing one of their standard gowns. Snape stood close by with his arms folded as Madam Pomfrey and Ginny performed an exam on Hermione. Madam Pomfrey tried to get him to wait out in the hall but he refused. She allowed him to stay, once Hermione said she would feel more comfortable with him by her side.

Madam Pomfrey ran a small square instrument over Hermione's belly and then she and Ginny exchanged looks. Madam Pomfrey began to shake nervously and said she had to go notify St. Mungo's that they would need extra equipment in six months which Hermione knew would be around February, when her baby was due. Madam Pomfrey rushed towards the door and Ginny called after her, "Madam Pomfrey, we should tell…"

"Go ahead and tell them dear…" she called as she was walking out of the hospital wing.

Snape stepped closer and took Hermione's hand in his; she was trembling.

"What is it Ginny?" Hermione asked nervously.

Ginny looked at them and replied, "There are actually two babies. You guys are having twins. They each have their own placenta so they're not identical."

Hermione couldn't believe it, "What? I've been worried about being a mother to one child and now I have to be a good mother of two?"

"How did this happen?" Snape asked looking at Hermione as if she were responsible.

"How did this happen?" She repeated, her voice raising an octave. "Well let me see if I can explain…You stuck your dick in me… and shot TWO eggs instead of ONE…that's how it happened."

Ginny snickered, put her hand over her mouth, and turned away to avoid Snape's annoyed glare.

Snape kissed his wife's hand. "Hermione, I didn't mean it like that. I meant…Never mind, whatever I say is going to sound stupid and piss you off."

 _Smart man,_ Ginny thought. _There might be hope for him, after all._

He pulled a chair up and sat down next to Hermione. "This is a good thing. Our baby won't be an only child and we're that much closer to meeting the Ministry's quota."

Hermione looked at him. He was trying to put a good spin on their news and it made her burst out laughing. "I'm sorry; I wasn't sure how many we signed up to provide…do you remember?"

"Sweetheart, you're just stressed out from the shock…"

"Well, the good news is that now we know what is causing your morning sickness to linger on. Multiples are always a little harder on your body as they need more nutrients. So we'll give you a prenatal potion that will..."

"No need, Mrs. Potter, I am going to brew my wife the best prenatal potion ever concocted. I am a Potion's Master, in case you ladies forgot."

Hermione laid her head back on the pillow. "Wait till my parents hear about this. My mother is going to be beside herself with excitement."

"You want to see them?" Ginny asked with a small grin.

"Who, my parents?"

"No, silly, the babies," Ginny said putting the square instrument back over Hermione's stomach and waved her wand, which caused an image to float in the air above it.

Snape looked at the image and had to catch his breath. There were two little babies cuddled together. Hermione was stunned into silence. Tears started to roll down her cheeks and Snape squeezed her hand tighter and brought it to his mouth for a kiss.

He noticed something on the image. "What's that?"

"That," Ginny said, "Is the babies' heartbeats."

"Amazing," Snape whispered. "And what's that glow?"

"Blue means male and pink means female."

"They're both blue," Snape observed.

"Yes," Ginny smiled, "That means they're both boys. You're having two sons."

"I'm having two sons." Snape whispered to Hermione as if she hadn't heard Ginny. Suddenly he was overcome with emotion and placed his forehead against Hermione's to control the tears that gathered in his eyes. Ginny waved her wand to turn the machine off and gave them some privacy. Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

"Thank you for my babies." She whispered as she felt one of his tears drip down onto her cheek.

He laughed and whispered, "No ma'am, thank you." Snape held her a little longer, allowing himself to regain his control and then kissed her on the forehead. He told her to rest and he'd be back. He was going down to the dungeon to make her prenatal potion.

Hermione sat up and began putting her skirt and sweater back on. "Not a chance, I'm coming with you. I'm pregnant, not helpless. I'll show you how skilled I have become at making potions."

Snape waited for her to get dressed and then held her hand as they walked down the long spiral staircase to his lair, he didn't want to take a chance on Hermione falling.

Hermione thought it was kind of cute how protective he was of her. It seemed weird that she was slowly starting to let go of the evil Professor persona and embracing the husband and father of her child persona.

"Hey," she said, a little out of breath—there were a lot of stairs, "Have you ever wanted to have sex in the dungeon? I'm mean, we're down here, we might as well try to…"

He stopped and looked back at her incredulously. "Are you trying to kill me?" They began descending the stairs again. "Yes, I've had several fantasies about having sex with a beautiful woman in the…" He stopped again and she almost collided with him. "I just realized that part of my fantasy came true." He started to descend the stairs again and this time she pulled back on his hand to halt his descent.

"What part of your fantasy came true?" She asked.

He rolled his eyes at her and shook his head in disbelief…she was supposed to be a bright witch. "The part about having sex with a beautiful woman, I just realized that has already come true."

She was two steps above him and wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him gently. He moaned into her mouth and she pressed her body against his and began kissing him with more fervor.

"Hermione," he whispered against her lips, "We've got to brew some pregnancy potion so my baby, make that babies, can recover from near starvation. Now after we brew the potion..." She smiled at him and released her hold and took his hand again, so they could continue down the stairs.

They reached the dungeon and began working together to prepare the potion. Hermione informed him that she was familiar with the potion and laid out the ingredients. She added the correct amount of each ingredient into the cauldron, each at the proper time. He was pleased with her level of skill. She gave it the correct number of stirs, counter-clock wise. When she had added the last ingredient, she looked to him for approval. He nodded his head that he was impressed.

She reached for the empty vial and a ladle, but he spoke slowly, for greater effect, "There's one more ingredient…a secret ingredient."

Hermione stared at him with narrowed eyes.

"You see," he continued, "a true Potions Master always keeps a secret ingredient up his sleeve." He pulled a small bottle from his sleeve and dropped a pinch of brown powder into the small cauldron, causing it to bubble quickly and then return to normal. He was rocking back and forth on his heels, a pleased, smug look on his face.

She held her hand out for the bottle. He placed it in her hand and she read the label, "Cinnamon? Cinnamon is your secret ingredient? Wait…where did you get this?"

"Yes, my beautiful young lady, cinnamon stabilizes the blood sugar which causes the potion to increase in potency without increasing the dosage. And for your information, I borrowed it from Molly's kitchen this morning." At her stern look he said, "I'm going to put it back. I wasn't sure if I had any in my reserves so I thought, better safe than sorry."

She shook her head at him in disbelief and leaned over to place a kiss on his smug mouth. "You never cease to amaze me."

"That's me…the Amazing Potions Master."

She laughed and said, "Sweet Merlin, you are incredible. How is it that some lucky witch didn't snatch you up years ago?"

His face reddened and he turned away, busying himself with collecting a vial for the potion.

"Severus, I know about your past. Please forgive me for sounding insensitive. I just find it hard to believe that no one has ever seen what an amazing man you are."

He turned slowly and looked into her eyes as if trying to discern if she was serious or just being kind. The sweet smile she fixed on him made his heart swell with pride. He swept over to her and snatched her up in his arms kissing her passionately, as her feet dangled above the floor.

He set her back down on her feet and stepped back to catch his breath. She reached under her skirt and removed her panties, sticking them in her pocket and saw Snape's eyes grow wide when she hoisted herself up on a small table and said, "Take me here; please…I want to feel you inside me again."

He crossed the room to her and she wrapped he legs around his waist. "Are you crazy? I'm not taking you here."

She began to protest before he lifted her like he did in the shower and moved her to the bigger workbench.

"This table is sturdier."

He reached between her legs and began undoing his belt buckle.

"That's my favorite sound now," she whispered.

"What sound?" he asked as he lowered his pants.

"The sound of your belt buckle as your pants are being undone, because that means you're getting ready to put your…" She didn't finish as he was already sliding himself inside her. She laid her head on his shoulder and moaned in pleasure.


	7. Chapter 7

Snape had been reluctant to take Hermione to his home on Spinster's End. He knew what her parents' home looked like; having been there before she came to Hogwarts, and worried that she would take one look at his meager abode and flee back to the Burrow. However, Hermione had taken one look at his book shelves and fell in love. She declared their home away from Hogwarts to be quaint and made plans to spruce it up, the following summer. He should have known Hermione would find potential in his parents dilapidated home, as she had the ability to see the inner beauty in everything. She was a lot like Lily in many ways. He was almost sad to leave what Hermione called their little love nest; however, all teachers were expected to take up residency at Hogwarts a month before the school term began.

It took longer than expected for them to move their things into Snape's chambers. Hermione declared it worth the wait, when she learned that Professor McGonagall had expanded Professor Snape's Chambers to include a small nursery. Professor McGonagall had accepted the position of Headmistress, when Professor Snape had made it clear to her, while he was still at Azkaban, that he would not remain the Headmaster—even if he was somehow cleared of all charges. As the Headmistress, she had the authority to expand any of the staff's chambers, as she saw fit.

That night, Hermione lay next to Severus in their bedroom and thought about the coming school year. Severus had warned her earlier that she needed to be prepared for when the students returned and learned that she was his wife. He expected that some of his Slytherin students wouldn't take too kindly to their Head of House being married to a Gryffindor. He promised that he would keep her safe; however, he could not show her any favoritism. He had to treat her like all the other students, even if it appeared that he was being unfair at times. She just hoped he wouldn't find it necessary to be unduly cruel to her, just as he had been in the past, just to pacify the students who belonged to his house.

She snuggled closer to him and he reached out and pulled her closer. It was chilly in the dungeons and she appreciated the fire that burned in the fireplace grates and the warm man she was pressed up against. She drifted off to sleep feeling safe and warm.

She spent the next two weeks studying her textbooks for the coming school year and decorating the nursery. They were nearing the end of August and even though she was only four-months pregnant, she was already sporting what Ginny referred to as a baby bump, due to carrying twins. She wanted to make sure the nursery would be ready in time for the babies' birth in February...that is if she carried them full-term. She used a small portion of the money her Aunt Mary had willed to her, when she passed away, while they were on the run searching Horcruxes to purchase baby furniture. Hermione had been surprised that her Aunt had left her a small fortune and had to practically demand that Severus transfer a large portion of it to his vault at Gringotts Bank. He had been reluctant to combine their accounts, even though it was one of the recommendations under the Marriage Law. He felt strongly that Hermione should keep her own vault as she had already given up so much. Hermione didn't see what all the fuss was about, since they shared everything else. In the end, Severus had transferred the funds but insisted that the goblins place her name on the account as well as his. He didn't want to take the chance that the Ministry would find a reason to seize his assets, in the future, and leave Hermione destitute. At least with her name on the account, she would be able to access their money if something happened to him. Anytime Severus tried to discuss something unfortunate happening to him, Hermione would become upset, so he stopped talking about it and decided to have the discussion with her again when she wasn't pregnant, suffering from pregnancy hormones and cried at the drop of a hat. Hermione thought that was just as well. In such a small amount of time, she had come to abhor the thought of not having Severus in her life. Ginny had attributed it to her pregnancy hormones; but Hermione knew better. What endeared him to her most was his ability to make her feel safe. After spending the last year on the run, not knowing if they were going to live or die, his commanding presence and warm embraces made her feel secure. Even while dead asleep, he would sense her waking from a nightmare and pull her close to him. Just laying in his arms after a bad dream, comforted her like no potion ever could. She'd lie awake in his warm embrace, listening to his gentle snoring, knowing that he had somehow sensed her distress and reached out for her. There was talk of the Ministry repealing the Marriage Law sometime in the future, when the population had thrived and possibly offering those affected the opportunity to file for divorce. Hermione had been depressed for two days and it had taken Severus' assurances that he would never abandon her, for her mood to brighten. Part of her hated that she had become this needy, clinging woman; however, another part of her was comforted with the knowledge that Severus wanted to be with her and had no plans to cast her aside the moment it became an option.

He had shaken his head in disbelief every time she cried over the thought of him leaving her. He'd been so unfair to her during her student days at Hogwarts and wondered that she had become so enamored with him. He knew he was not an attractive man. His pallid skin, large hooked nose, horrid teeth, and greasy, lank hair had resulted in women never giving him a second look. His hair was no longer greasy, due to Hermione's amazing shampoo; however he accepted that he would never be a heartthrob. The way she looked at him, though, made him feel like an attractive man, for the first time in his life. He took a risk one night after dinner, when they were relaxing by the fire, and asked her what she found so bloody attractive about him. She complemented what she called his dark, smoldering eyes and deep sexy voice. Then she ran her hand along his jaw line and told him he had a strong, handsome face and kissed him on the nose as she declared him to be perfect, in her eyes. It was unexpected and not one bit unpleasant. It had done his ego worlds of good. He walked a little taller now and took extra care of his appearance. He wanted to be worthy of the beautiful creature that kindly reminded those who slipped and called her Hermione Granger that her name was now Hermione Snape.

* * *

The start of term was a week away. Snape returned home late and checked on Hermione, pleased to find that she was already asleep. She had been pushing herself to memorize every word of her school books and work on that blasted nursery. He wished she would take more time to rest and not worry about things like ensuring the nursery ensemble, whatever the hell that was, matched the color theme of the room, which was in shades of what she called Forest Green.

He poured himself a glass of elf-made wine and sat down on the sofa, stretching his legs out in front of him and sighing in contentment. He had been reluctant to merge their bank accounts, but she threw a tantrum until he relented. The tidy sum residing in their vault was enough to live on comfortably for many years to come. It was comforting knowing that he did not have to work, if the need to walk away from his teaching position ever arose. He was determined to stay at Hogwarts until Hermione graduated. After that, he would follow that woman anywhere. He could become an independent brewer or finish that potions textbook Hermione had been encouraging him to write. She felt that the potions textbook currently utilized by teachers was seriously lacking and thought he could easily revise most of the potion instructions to include all of the tweaks he had included in his textbook, while he was a student. He chuckled when he remembered the conversation they had, regarding the textbook Harry had discovered during their sixth year. Harry had used Severus' textbook to excel in class, to the utter dismay of Hermione, who followed the instructions in her standard textbook and for once was not at the top of her class. It still irked her that Potter had out-shined her that year. Her eyes sparkled when she said she hadn't realized what a dangerous man her husband was. He'd told her to remove her knickers and he'd show her how dangerous he could be. He felt himself harden when he remembered the thorough shagging he'd received, after he made that small comment. His randy little wife nearly fucked the life out of him. He'd found himself sprawled out on their bed, staring at the ceiling and trying to catch his breath thinking his heart was going to explode. He pulled his mind from that delicious memory as he finished the glass of wine and grabbed the bottle off the side table, pouring himself another glass, without moving off of the sofa. He looked around his chambers and noticed the little touches that his wife had quietly added; making their living quarters a perfect blend of both their tastes. It was rather calming to come back to their quarters each night and relax in the pleasant atmosphere his wife had created. His wife...he never thought he would ever have one of those, especially one as amazing as Hermione. He knew he didn't deserve her and chalked it up to fate rewarding him, for all he had suffered during his lifetime.

He looked up when Hermione walked out into the sitting room and rubbed her eyes...damn, she was beautiful. She was wearing a sheer nightgown that barely reached the bottom of her thighs and showed off her blossoming figure. He felt himself harden as his eyes focused on her breasts, which seemed to have doubled in size.

Hermione saw his smoldering gaze and felt her lower region coil in desire.

"When did you get home, Severus? Why didn't you wake me?" She asked as she straddled his lap.

Snape moaned in longing as he ran his hands up and down her sides before cupping her breasts and leaning in to kiss her. She kissed him deeply and pulled her mouth away to lick her lips. She loved kissing him and tasting the sweetness of the elf-made wine.

"Take off your panties, Hermione," He breathed against her neck.

"I'm not wearing panties," she whispered, her voice husky, full of longing.

"Circe, woman, are your trying to kill me?" He whispered as he stood up with her in his arms, carried her into their bedroom and gently laid her down, so her hips were on the edge of the bed. He leaned over and kissed her softly on the lips, then proceeded to place small kisses from her neck down over her swollen belly. He dropped down on his knees and buried his face between her legs. She cried out in pleasure when she felt him run his tongue over her swollen clit. She threaded her fingers through his hair and massaged his scalp as he pulled her legs up and draped them over his shoulders. He slid two fingers inside her tight pussy as he continued licking and sucking on her clit. He curved his fingers so he was touching her most sensitive area and earned a gasp of pleasure from her lovely mouth.

 _Damn, that book on oral pleasure was worth every galleon,_ Snape thought as he continued his ministration between her legs. _Shit, she tastes so fuckin good._

Hermione cried out when an intense orgasm seized her, causing her legs to shake uncontrollably. Severus chuckled and stood to divest himself of all his clothes before sliding her body up so that she lying completely on the bed. He settled himself between her spread legs, before placing his hardness against her opening and driving home. They both gasped at the pleasure of him being buried completely inside her. He placed his hands on either side of her to keep from putting any weight on her stomach as he began thrusting in and out of her. Hermione moaned in pleasure and begged him to thrust harder. Snape loved it when she begged and gave her exactly what she asked for. He reveled in the sounds of her moans and gasps of pleasure as he began to thrust harder, giving her what they both needed. Her sounds of pleasure washed over him and healed his wounded heart, a little more, each time he made love to his beautiful wife. Her body gripped him during her final orgasm prompting him to lose control and growl in satisfaction as he spilled his seed deep inside her.

 _Damn, this woman practically milks my cum right out me_ , Snape thought as he withdrew slowly from her, hesitant to end their connection. He reached for his wand and with a wave; they were both clean and dry. He turned onto his side, before pulling her back up against his chest and spooning snuggly with his sleeping wife. He chuckled softly when he thought of how quickly she fell asleep after he sexed the hell out of her.

The next few days flew by in last minute preparations for the new school year. They both fell into bed exhausted each night. Even though Hermione took a nap during the day, which her husband insisted on, she still felt worn out by the end of the day. She voiced her concern to her husband, regarding how tired she was becoming and with the start of school, she was afraid she would fall asleep in class. Snape had taken a look at her schedule and decided she should use her free period to nap every day. Hermione had tried to argue that free periods were for studying for their N.E.W.T.s; However, Snape had been adamant that she could take the N.E.W.T.s today and pass. Study period was for studying...free period was for napping. Hermione decided he was right although, she was a little miffed at how easily she gave in to him, these days. If Harry or Ron had suggested a nap during free period, she would have hexed them beyond belief. Of course, she wasn't carrying two growing babies back then either.

It was now Sunday night and Snape lay next to Hermione thinking about how busy the next day would be. Not only would he have to face all the students who would be returning, there would also be all the new students that had been unable to attend the year before due to Voldemort's reign. He sighed and moved closer to his delightfully toasty, slumbering wife. With this woman by his side, he was confident that he could face any challenge this new school year threw at him.

* * *

Hermione rolled over onto her side and pulled the blankets up to her chin. The castle was chilly in the mornings, especially down in the dungeon where their quarters were located. She observed her husband standing in front of the full-length mirror, adjusting his caveat. He looked so handsome with his freshly washed hair and new teaching suit. His hair now hung softly to his shoulders, so black in seemed to give off sheens of blue in the sunlight. She yawned and his eyes met hers in the mirror. He crossed the room and sat on the side of the bed next to her, before placing a lingering kiss on her forehead.

"I'm sorry, love. I didn't mean to wake you. We have an early morning staff meeting. Go back to sleep, I will send an elf to awaken you in time to get ready for your first class."

Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned into him.

"You look utterly delicious, Professor Snape." She whispered against his neck. He scoffed and gently pushed her back down onto the bed, tucking the blankets around her.

"Go to sleep, you don't get enough sleep as it is. My babies need to rest and so do you." He gently admonished before kissing her on the lips and sailing out of their bedroom, his cloak billowing behind him. She heard the portal open and close behind him.

It had taken them a little while to fall into some sort of rhythm, after moving into his teaching quarters. She wondered what turn their lives would take once their babies were born. Her mind wandered to the nursery and she smiled. Hermione loved the soft green hues that covered the walls and most of the accessories they had received from well wishers, after Rita published her second article. It seemed most people felt green would be an excellent color for the child of her Slytherin husband. Hermione smiled to herself as she lie in bed and thought about what had prompted Rita to write her second article. Hermione had taken one of her husband's empty jars, placed a stem with lush green leaves inside and poked a few holes in the lid before wrapping it in lovely wrapping paper. When Rita had received Hermione's thoughtful package, she panicked and wrote a lovely article extolling the part Severus Snape and his lovely new bride had played in bringing down the dark lord. Her article seemed sickly-sweet; ending with her congratulations on their expected arrival, stating Merlin himself must have blessed them for their part in saving their wizarding world. After her article, gifts came pouring in from all over. Severus was surprised at Rita's second article; however, if he suspected her of having something to do with it, he never voiced his suspicions. Severus had become a doting husband who refused to let her lift anything and was always watching her to make sure she didn't overtax herself. He had also insured she ate plenty at every meal and that she got plenty of rest. They couldn't keep their hands off each other the first few weeks after they married; however, since moving into his quarters, he was constantly pulled in different directions and she was lucky if she could get him naked on a night that wasn't Monday. She had started to become self-conscious about her growing size and hoped he wasn't turned off by her new body. She had voiced her concerns after dinner one night, but he had absentmindedly kissed her on the head like a small child and murmured that she was beautiful, before retreating to his office to prepare for the coming school term. She went out of her way to commend him on things and ensure that he felt appreciated. It seemed, however, the closer they got to the school year starting, the more detached he became. If Hermione didn't know better, she would think he had begun to regret that he had been forced to marry her and that he had children on the way. Hermione figured it was probably her hormones that were causing her to overreact. And yet, part of her felt saddened that Severus never got a chance to date, never got a chance to woo someone he cared for, at least woo them and win their affection. No, serving two masters had stolen his past, and then fate used her to steal his future. Hermione shook her head to clear her thoughts. Severus had said several times that he was grateful for his babies and made an effort to thank her for carrying them. Hermione scoffed at herself for being so needy. She found that she really couldn't help it. Even now, their quarters seemed empty without his presence filing up the room. Hermione's reminiscing was interrupted by a huge yawn that escaped her. Since entering her second trimester, she found that she was always tired. She rolled over onto her side into a fetal position and fell back to sleep.

She was startled awake. It seemed as if only five minutes had passed when a house elf was standing next to the bed staring at her nervously, while wringing its hands.

"Missess Snape, ma'am, the Professor is saying yous is to get up now. Yous is going to be late for class if yous not getting up soon. Gussie has breakfast in next room. The Professor is saying yous has to eat it all. He is saying yous is too skinny." The poor elf kept wringing her hands as she explained all this to her.

Hermione chuckled at her husband's thoughtfulness and thanked Gussie, gladly accepting her assistance in pulling back the blankets and assisting her by slipping her slippers onto her feet, when she was finally sitting on the side of the bed.

She made use of the bathroom, and then entered their sitting area to eat the breakfast her husband had insisted on providing, because she was too skinny. Her heart fairly sang when she thought of him saying she was too skinny. She loved that about Severus; he seemed able to sense her moods and knew how to make her feel better. Just when she was beginning to feel self-conscious about her weight; he had declared that she was too skinny. She ate everything on the plate and finished two cups of tea, earning her a toothy grin from Gussie, when the house elf came to remove the tray. Hermione showered and dressed for her class, deciding to pin her hair up, so she wouldn't have to worry about it today.

She had already received her class schedule from Professor McGonagall, so she went directly to her first class and found a seat near the front. Luckily, her first class was Charms, which had always been one of her favorite subjects. She was excited for the class to begin and called out a greeting to the few students, from her year group, who had actually chosen to return. Harry, Ron, Draco and several other classmates from her year group had taken the Ministry up on its offer to let them test out early and had not returned to finish their final year. It seemed odd not to see them sitting in the classroom with her. Hermione remembered the students they had lost during the war and felt her heart ache with the sense of their loss. So much had happened; it was hard to believe it had only been four months since the Final War. That's what everyone was calling it, for it was believed that Voldemort had truly been vanquished this time around. Some students she did not recognize also joined the class. These would be all the students that were in the same year group as Ginny.

Hermione smiled and made room for Ginny to sit next to her. The babies were moving slightly, causing Hermione to place her hand on her protruding stomach. Ginny noticed and asked permission to feel the babies move. Hermione took Ginny's hand and placed it on her stomach, just as one of the babies moved his foot. Ginny smiled in delight and stared at Hermione wistfully. Ginny was several weeks behind Hermione and couldn't wait for her own "baby bump" to become more prominent and to feel her baby kicking.

Professor Flitwick climbed onto his teaching step, which was nothing more than a stack of books that offered him the extra height in which to make eye contact with his students.

Professor Flitwick went over the roll call and hesitated at Hermione's name, the sound of hushed whispering echoed through the classroom. Hermione cringed inside. She remembered the first article Rita Skeeter had printed which claimed that Severus had gotten her pregnant while he was still Headmaster at Hogwarts. That part was actually true; however, it hadn't been due to her whoring around with him. Hermione knew there was a rumor going around that he only married her due to putting her in the family way. Hermione didn't realize she had become tense until she felt Ginny squeeze her hand in reassurance. Hermione released the tension from her body and relaxed.

Professor Flitwick cleared his throat to get their attention and continued with his Roll Call. Once that bit of awkwardness was over, Professor Flitwick had them break up into small groups and practice charms that they had covered during the previous years. He explained that he wanted to do a quick refresher to ascertain everyone's level of understanding, before proceeding with new charms.

Hermione and Ginny found themselves teamed with two girls from Ginny's year. Ginny introduced them as Katherine Allen, a tall girl with dark blond hair and big brown eyes. Hermione smiled kindly at Katherine, since she resembled a frightened deer. Last to be introduced was Elizabeth Stewart, a tall, lovely girl with long dark-red hair and green eyes. She had the perfect hour-glass figure every young woman dreams of, plus she had thick gorgeous lashes. Hermione instantly wanted to hate her, but couldn't bring herself to do it. Hermione fought the urge to stare at Elizabeth, however. She reminded her of someone, although she couldn't quite put her finger on why the young woman seemed so familiar to her. Katherine was a student she had seen in the Gryffindor Common room before, but Hermione knew she'd remember seeing Elizabeth there. Elizabeth commented that her parents had pulled her out of Hogwarts to be home-schooled after the Tri-Wizard Tournament and this was her first year returning. She commented that she was working extra hard this year to prove that she belonged here. Hermione immediately emphasized with her. The two girls admitted that they were both engaged to be married; however, since the deadline to be married wasn't until the end of December, neither had taken the plunge yet.

"My fiancé is a student in Hufflepuff, I barely know him," Katherine said quietly, looking down at her feet.

"My fiancé is an older wizard, who is extremely wealthy," Elizabeth said with a self-important sniff. She held out her wrist to show them a lovely diamond bracelet. "He keeps showering me in presents in an attempt to get me to marry him right away," she flipped her lovely hair over her shoulder, "but I keep reminding him that a Christmas wedding is much more romantic than a summer one. Besides, what's the rush? I'll have the rest of my life to be a wife, but I only have a small amount of time left to be fancy free." She threw a wink at Katherine that made the girl blush.

They practiced a few simple charms, before Katherine turned to Hermione and asked, "Is it true you are actually married to Headmaster Snape?" Katherine was staring at her with her big, round eyes. Even Elizabeth seemed intent on hearing her answer.

"It's just Professor Snape, now; he stepped down from his position as Headmaster and teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts." Hermione answered, pausing as she saw Katherine look towards Elizabeth with a frightened glance, which irked Hermione to no end.

"Come on, he's not that scary..." She began when there was a sharp rap on the door.

As if she had pulled him from her thoughts, Severus opened the door and swept into the classroom. Professor Flitwick didn't seem surprised at the interruption.

Hermione watched her husband glide across the room and felt her lower belly coil...tonight was Monday night. She wished he would turn around and look at her. She wanted more than anything to look into his dark, smoldering eyes and see if he acknowledged her in the other students' presence.

As a matter of fact, Professor Snape did turn around; however, his gaze immediately fell on Elizabeth and he stared as if he was transfixed. Suddenly, Hermione realized why Elizabeth had looked familiar—she was practically the spitting image of Lily Potter.

Professor Flitwick called the class to return to their seats. Hermione's heart hammered in her chest as she observed her husband and Elizabeth Stewart stare at one another as time seemed to stand still for her. Elizabeth was twirling a piece of her long hair around her finger and staring alluringly at Professor Snape. He continued staring until he seemed to shake himself free of her gaze and spun on his heel practically fleeing the classroom.

Hermione's insides were whirling as Ginny stepped up next to her and took her hand with the intention to guiding her best friend back to her seat. Before Ginny had a chance to pull Hermione in the direction of their seats, however, Elizabeth turned to Katherine and declared loudly, "I have never realized how sensual Professor Snape's eyes are. If he did something with his teeth, he'd be absolutely gorgeous. Did you see how he was staring at me? Someone obviously has a thing for redheads."

Hermione felt sick to her stomach, and jumped when Professor Flitwick appeared at their sides and insisted that they take their seats. Hermione felt dazed and confused, grateful for Ginny guiding her to her seat, as she would not have made it there on her own. Elizabeth's words cut her to her very soul. Of course her husband had a thing for redheads, that fact was well known.

Snape returned to his office, dropped into his office chair and held his head in his hands. His heart had almost stopped when he turned around and thought he'd seen Lilly Evans standing in Flitwick's classroom. Of course, he realized it couldn't have been Lily; however, the girl was the spitting image of Lily at the age of 17. He looked over at his cabinet and longed to pour himself a stiff drink. He resisted the urge and leaned back in his chair, running his hand through his hair. Seeing her standing there had shaken him to his very core. He thought he had gotten past his regret over the part he played in Lily's death; however, seeing her standing there, looking at him with the same come hither look Lily use to give him, caused his heart to ache. It felt as if the oxygen was being sucked from the room and he had to get out of there. Shit! Hermione had Flitwick's class during that period. Hopefully, she hadn't seen him stare at the girl like a stricken, old fool. He hadn't even sought out his wife, he'd just run from the room like a bloody coward. He sighed and stood to enter his classroom. He could hear his third year students filing in and taking their seats. He would see Hermione at lunch in the great hall. He would seek her out there and make sure she was okay. The last thing he wanted was for his wife to think he was still fixated on a woman who had died so long ago.


	8. Chapter 8

Thank you for all the positive reviews! Severus and Hermione had a rocky start and are now facing the first trial in their marriage. Here's another chapter for my wonderful fans. This chapter will shed some light on their situation.

Once again, I do not own these two characters, I am just grateful that I get to play, what if...

* * *

Flitwick's class was dismissed and Hermione walked alongside Ginny as they followed the other students down the corridor towards their Arithmancy class. She took her seat next to Ginny and pushed her nervous thoughts from her mind as she concentrated on the problems Professor Vector gave them to practice, so she could see where all the students stood academically. Hermione had always enjoyed Arithmancy, even though it was closely related to Divination, which she had dropped from her schedule this year. Hermione felt that Divination was a useless subject that consisted of nothing more than staring at tea grounds and using them to determine your future. Hermione made an audible harrumphing sound when she thought of how worthless the study of Divinations was and threw Professor Vector an apologetic smile when she frowned in her direction. Hermione looked back down at her equations and sighed. Yes, Trelawney's prophesy, regarding Harry had come to fruition; however, that could be due to everyone interrupting them as such. What if Voldemort had targeted Neville's parents'—instead of Harry's? Harry's whole life would have been different. Hermione pushed those thoughts out of her mind and concentrated on completing her Arithmancy problems.

Hermione finished her problems, before the other students, and walked up to Professor Vector's desk to hand them in.

"Are you feeling alright, Mrs. Snape?" Professor Vector asked her quietly. Hermione quickly assured her that she was fine and returned to her seat to wait for the other students to finish. Hermione heard Elizabeth whispering to Katherine and was sure she heard her husband's name mentioned. Hermione clenched her fists to keep herself from marching back to Elizabeth and telling her to keep her big mouth shut and her mind off of her man. Hermione unclenched her fists and took a deep cleansing breath.

 _What the hell is the matter with me?_ _I'm acting like a jealous fifth-year student. My husband cares for me. He was probably just surprised to see someone who favored Lily's appearance. Yes, that was probably it._

Hermione smiled to herself when she remembered her husband's snarky nature and reasoned that Elizabeth would forget all about Professor Snape the moment she fell victim to his biting tongue.

 _If Elizabeth so much as puts one toe out of line,_ Hermione thought with a small smile gracing her lovely face, _Severus will hand her head to her on a platter_. That thought alone brightened Hermione's disposition and she walked to Ancient Ruins, alongside Ginny, with a spring in her step. If he became snarky with Hermione during his class, she reasoned, she could always demand makeup sex when he returned to their quarters. That's something Elizabeth would never experience. Thinking of the things she'd make her husband do, to make it up to her, made Hermione's temperature rise. _Damn, I am getting so randy, the closer I get to my third trimester,_ she thought as they entered the classroom and took their seats. Hermione reminded herself that it was Monday after all and couldn't have removed the smile off her face, if she tried.

They were finally headed toward the great hall for lunch and Hermione felt like she could eat a horse. She was thrilled that she would be able to look up and see her delicious husband at the head table. She suddenly had an appetite for more than food and blushed when she realized the paths her thoughts were taking her in.

Hermione took her seat at the Gryffindor table next to Ginny and was irked to see Elizabeth and Katherine take the seats across the table from them. As soon as the food arrived Hermione began shoveling it in. She noticed a side glance from Ginny and whispered, "Don't look at me like that...just wait...soon you'll be hungry all the time, too." Ginny threw her a hopeful grin and began pushing the food around on her plate. Hermione realized Ginny must be suffering from morning sickness. She would mention this to Severus and ask him to provide her best friend with the same potion that he had brewed for her.

Hermione glanced across the table at Elizabeth and saw that she was staring up at the head table. Hermione looked towards the head table as well and was disheartened to see that Severus was staring back at Elizabeth with hooded lenses. She felt her stomach flip and wished she hadn't eaten so much. Severus must have felt her gaze upon him, because his gaze shifted to her and she saw him look down at his plate quickly. He whispered something to Headmaster McGonagall, stood without looking back at the Gryffindor table and fled out the staff door behind the head table. Hermione looked down at her lap and felt like crying. She took a deep breath and fought to reign in her emotions. It didn't mean anything. He was just looking, that's all. _More like undressing her with his eyes_ , her inner voice taunted her.

Hermione excused herself and went back to her quarters to lie down. Her free period was next and she had promised Severus that she would nap during that time. She could make up for it during her study period. She normally would have taken the electives, Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology after lunch; however, both Hagrid and Professor Sprout had insisted that pregnant students not attend their classes due to the dangerous items they worked with.

Hermione managed to hold back her tears until she had entered their quarters and then the floodgates opened. She lay on their bed and cried until she fell asleep. She had never felt so insecure in her entire life. She knew she was no raving beauty like Elizabeth and feared that every time her husband looked at her, he would be thinking the same thing. Oh, how she wished she had spent more time on her appearance that morning.

Gussie woke her in time to proceed to the library for the last half of her study period. She sat at a table far enough away from Elizabeth and her friends that she could see them, but not have to hear them. She knew they were talking about Professor Snape. She could tell by the way they kept whispering and then sneaking glances at her. Her heart hurt just thinking about what they could be saying. Deciding it was better to just go to her next class early, rather than stay here and worry; she placed her books in her schoolbag and slung it over her shoulder. She was watching Elizabeth and realized she was smiling at something in the doorway. She realized what that something was when she collided with her husband, who was loitering in the hallway.

"Watch where you're going," he snapped, and frowned when he saw it was her.

"Sorry, Professor," Hermione said drawing out the last word. "I didn't see you standing there."

Snape's expression softened and he smiled at her before looking back at Elizabeth and frowning. Hermione followed his glance and turned back to look at him. His eyes snapped back to her and he had the grace to blush when he realized she had caught him staring at Elizabeth.

 _Damn it all_ , he thought, angry at himself again. He had come down here specifically to check on his wife and make sure she was okay. _Why did she have to catch me looking at that blasted girl, again? Why does she have to look so much like Lily?_

"It's unnerving how much she looks like her, isn't it?" Hermione asked quietly, giving him an opportunity to justify his sudden fascination with Elizabeth. He glared at her, turned on his heel and strode up the corridor, his cape billowing behind him. Hermione sighed and headed in the other direction towards her Transfiguration class. Why wouldn't he just confide in her that he was unnerved by her likeness to Lily? Was he actually attracted to Elizabeth? Hermione felt that now familiar ache in her heart and wanted to just go back to sleep and dream of a world where the memory of Lily didn't haunt her at every turn and her husband worshipped the ground Hermione walked on.

After Transfiguration class, which she managed to get through without turning into an emotional mess; Hermione stood to follow everyone out the door. Their new Transfigurations Teacher, Professor Sanguine, called out for her to stay a moment. Hermione bid Ginny goodbye, since Ginny was going to the medical wing for her apprenticeship with Madam Pomphrey, and approached the Professor's desk. He shook her hand and said he had been waiting to meet Severus' wife, as he had known Severus rather well, back in the day; whatever that meant. He was a rather attractive man with long blond hair and reminded her a little of Lucius Malfoy. He had noticed that Hermione had looked as if she did not feel well and encouraged her to let him know if she ever needed to be excused from his class. He proceeded to ask if she needed any help with Transfiguration. He would gladly set aside some time in the evenings to tutor her if she felt she needed it. Hermione smiled at him politely and assured him that she was fine and that Transfiguration was one of her best subjects. She promised to let him know if she needed any additional assistance from him and exited his class in a state of confusion. If she didn't know better, she would think he had been flirting with her. She pushed that out of her mind as she headed to the class that she dreaded the most, Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Hermione was disheartened to see that Professor Snape had already begun to take roll call and silently cursed Professor Sanguine for making her late. Severus fixed her with a glare and said with a nasty smile, "So good of you to join us, Miss Granger. I had begun to think you assumed you were too good for this class. Fifty points from Gryffindor, please take your seat."

Elizabeth giggled behind her hand, and Hermione snapped around to fix her with a glare.

"I said, take your seat, Miss Granger," Snape hissed. Hermione threw him a hurtful look when she realized not only had he referred to her as Miss Granger, twice, he hadn't seen fit to scold Elizabeth for laughing at her.

Hermione took her seat and refused to look at him, during the remainder of the class.

Snape stole several glances at his wife and sighed inwardly when he realized he had let the tension between him and Miss Stewart get the better of him and took it out on his Hermione. Still, she was late for class and that could not be tolerated.

As soon as class was over, Hermione stood to flee the classroom.

"Please stay behind, Mrs. Snape; I require a word with you." Hermione grit her teeth when Elizabeth giggled again and glided out of the classroom with the other students.

Hermione approached his desk and stared down at the floor. It hurt to look at him.

Snape noticed her refusal to look at him and sighed.

"Why were you late, Mrs. Snape?" he asked quietly.

"Oh, it's Mrs. Snape, now, is it?" She demanded, fixing him with a glare.

"What are you on about?"

"You called me Miss Granger twice and took points from me, but not your precious Miss Stewart," she said hotly.

Snape's eyes widened in surprise at her tone, "I apologize, a slip of the tongue, I assure you. Now back to my question, why were you late?"

"Professor Sanguine held me over," Hermione said with a sigh, he still hadn't addressed the situation with Miss Stewart.

"Why, did he hold you over?" he asked with narrowed eyes. Snape recalled Sanguine from when they were both students at Hogwarts. Jason Sanguine had also been infatuated with Lily and had tried, without success, to steal her from James.

"I'm not really sure. He kept offering to free up his evenings to tutor me in Transfigurations. I assured him it was one of my best subjects and I would not require his assistance. He was quite adamant that I let him know if he could help me in anyway." She huffed looking away in frustration.

 _Oh course he did_ , Snape thought as he clenched his fists, imagining them around Sanguine's throat. _Someone as lovely as Hermione would have definitely caught his eye. I'll just have to pay a visit to my old friend and warn him to keep his hands off things that don't belong to him._

"I don't want you speaking to him or so much as looking at him unless you are in his classroom," Snape said as jealousy reared its ugly head.

"That's rich, coming from you," Hermione grumbled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Snape hissed.

"Please, you haven't been able to take your eyes off Lily," Snape's eyes widened at her slip of the name, "I mean Elizabeth all day. You haven't so much as looked at me today, except for when you were raking me over the coals in front of the entire class. Elizabeth laughed at me and you didn't even so much as scold her or take points from her."

"You're acting like a child, Hermione." Snape said with a sneer as he stood and turned away from her to stare at the jars residing on the shelf against his wall.

Hermione sighed in resignation, "Look Severus, I understand. She looks like Lily must have at her age..."

"I don't want to talk about this!" Severus said more harshly then he meant to. He ran his hand through his hair in frustration and turned back to lean his hands on his desk.

"I'm your wife, Severus, if you can't talk to me about this—who can you talk to, please...don't shut me out." She pleaded.

"You will be late for your next class, Mrs. Snape." He said in frustration. "You don't want to lose any more points."

Hermione spun on her heel and stormed out of his class, slamming the door in her wake.

Snape cursed at her impertinence and dropped back down in his chair. Didn't she realize how hard this was for him? _No she doesn't,_ his inner voice taunted, _you refuse to speak to her about it_. _How is she supposed to know how you feel?_ Snape ran his hand down his face and groaned. Why did Miss Stewart have to look so much like his beloved Lily? It was hard enough to deal with his regret over her death without looking at the young woman and feeling all those long forgotten feelings surfacing again...Merlin, how he had loved Lily. Snape shook his head to chase those thoughts away. No, he had Hermione now. She had done more for him and shown him more kindness than Lily ever had. He would just have to ignore Miss Stewart and hope to get through the school year without making a fool out himself and hurting Hermione. He had his unborn children to think about. With a dejected sigh, he stacked the wayward papers on his desk and prepared for his final class of the day.

Hermione arrived to her History of Magic class late; however, Professor Binns just nodded to her as she took her seat. He floated over to his desk and marked Hermione as present. She noticed Elizabeth staring at her as she entered the classroom. Hermione fixed a smile upon her face as if she had just finished snogging her husband.

Elizabeth frowned and turned around in her seat, ignoring Hermione the remainder of the class. Hermione found she preferred that the young woman ignore her rather than steal glances at her while obviously whispering things about her to Katherine, who always seemed to be sitting next to her. Ginny also skipped this class, since it was an elective after fifth year. Hermione was taking Professor Binns N.E.W.T. level class so she would be prepared for her N.E.W.T.s at the end of the school year. Hermione pushed all thoughts of Severus out of her mind and concentrated on the material they were assigned to review in class.

Hermione stayed behind after class to apologize to Professor Binns for being late. He waived her excuse aside, assured her that she was his best student and he was confident she would not have been late unless it was absolutely necessary. His comment about her being his best student boosted Hermione's ego. Her heart suddenly felt lighter than had all day as she returned to her quarters to freshen up before dinner. She wanted to wait for Severus to come back to their chambers and apologize to him for being disrespectful to him after his class today. She had been short with him, even while declaring that she understood what he must be going through.

Severus had not returned by dinnertime and Hermione assumed he must have gotten tied up after his last class. He had warned her there would be days when she would barely see him and she had assured him that she understood.

She trudged to the great hall and was disheartened to see that he was sitting at the head table, picking over his food. He looked up at her and she offered him a small smile. He returned her smile, briefly, before turning to reply to something Hagrid was asking him. Hermione finished her dinner and listened to Ginny tell her about the things Madam Pomfrey had covered during their training today. Hermione envied Ginny for knowing what she wanted to do after graduation. Hermione was taking as many N.E.W.T. level classes as possible; she wanted to keep all her options open. Severus had assured Hermione that she could pursue whatever career she chose; however, he was adamant that she go to University and pursue her education, first. Hermione glanced up at the head table again and was saddened to see that Severus had already departed. She looked across the table and was surprised to see that Elizabeth was absent, as well. She looked at Katherine and was dismayed to see her look away as if she was riddled with guilt. Hermione was about to ask Katherine where Elizabeth had gone, but she stopped herself. She did not want to appear to be obsessed with Lily's lookalike.

Hermione returned to their chambers and worked on her homework, while she waited for her husband to come home. When it became late, she changed into her sheer nightgown and laid down on the bed to wait for him. Surely, he wouldn't forget that it was Monday night.

When Snape finally returned to their quarters, the lights were turned down and Hermione had already gone to bed. He could feel the burning on the back of his hand and knew he was cutting it close. He quickly undressed and slipped under the covers next to her. She seemed to be sleeping, although he could hear her making that soft heaving sound that women make after they have cried very hard. He rolled his eyes at his wife's uncontrolled emotions and slid into position behind her.

After kissing her softly on the shoulder, to let her know he was there, he reached between her legs and stimulated her with his fingers until he heard her moan softly and felt her become wet with desire. He took his hardness and slid into her from behind. Hermione gasped in surprise at his sudden penetration. He gritted his teeth as he took her in this position. It was too difficult to thrust properly, while lying on his side. He withdrew, turned her on her back quickly and leaned over her as he thrust back inside her. Hermione wrapped her legs around his waist and began meeting his thrusts causing him to moan in intense pleasure. Sex with his wife was always phenomenal. She placed her hands on his shoulders and moaned. He looked down at her lovely face. As he stared down at her, her features began to change and he was now looking into the face of Elizabeth. He sighed in pleasure and drank Elizabeth's beauty in as he continued to thrust into her. She moaned in pleasure and her features went out of focus and Hermione's returned. Her eyes were closed and he shook his head to clear his thoughts.

 _What the hell was that?_ He thought as he continued fucking his wife. _Hell, he'd just imagined that he was fucking Elizabeth._ His cock throbbed at the thought that he had found it almost preferable to fucking Hermione. He was suddenly wracked with guilt and concentrated on finishing as soon as possible. Severus quickened his pace and Hermione was just starting to feel the beginnings of an orgasm when he grunted above her and cried out when he came. He quickly rolled off her and lay on his back as he fought to catch his breath. Hermione stared up at the ceiling in confusion.

 _What the hell_? Hermione thought, " _Why had he been in such a hurry?_ He had never cum without making sure she had orgasmed at least twice.

He waved his wand in the darkness to clean them and then turned onto his side, facing away from her. She rolled over and wrapped her arms around him. He stiffened at her touch.

"Are you still angry at me, Severus? I apologize for being disrespectful to you, after class. Please don't be mad at me." Hermione whispered against his back.

Snape relaxed and cursed himself for being such an ass towards her. He was still reeling over the fact that he'd just fantasized about one of his students and didn't feel like he could face Hermione. Taking the easy way out, he murmured, "I'm not angry, Hermione, I'm just exhausted after such a busy day."

Hermione sighed and smiled contentedly as she fell asleep with her arms still wrapped around him.

Snape lay in the darkness and battled with his conscious. He should not have spent so much time with Elizabeth this evening. He should have been home with his wife, where he belonged.

He remembered how surprised he had been when Miss Stewart had come to his classroom after dinner and knocked on his door. She had a note from Headmaster McGonagall, giving her permission to receive extra tutoring from Professor Snape for her N.E.W.T.s. Snape had bristled at the thought that McGonagall had done this without speaking to him first. What did she expect of him, after seeing how much this young woman resembled Lily? _She expects you to be a professional and put your feelings aside to teach a student._ His inner voice had chastised him.

He had indicated a chair across from his desk and told her to take a seat. He had spent the next few hours discussing a tutoring schedule with her. She seemed highly intelligent and he was impressed with how quickly she grasped the subjects he had discussed. He called a house elf to request some tea for him and Miss Stewart. He glared at Gussie when she appeared and raised her eyebrows at him meeting privately with a female student. Gussie disappeared and returned with the requested tea tray. She bowed and disappeared as quickly as she had appeared.

Miss Stewart had inquired about a book and he had left the room, briefly, to fetch it for her. He handed her the book when he returned and they enjoyed their tea in silence.

It was after they had finished their tea that he started noticing little things about Miss Stewart. She had a delightful laugh that warmed his insides. Her eyes were the exact color Lily's had been and he felt like he could fall right into them. He had moved to the student chair next to her in order to go over the contents of the book. She would reach out and touch him periodically to make a point. He found her touch to be rather pleasant and had caught himself wishing she would touch him more.

Now, lying in bed next to his wife, guilt flooded him again when he thought about Hermione, crying herself to sleep while he was in his classroom, dare he say, flirting with a student. He felt self-loathing flow over him and vowed that Monday nights would be reserved for Hermione. He would tutor Miss Stewart on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. He closed his eyes and Miss Stewart's lovely face hovered behind his eyelids. He fell asleep thinking about her delightful laugh and welcome touch.

* * *

September flowed into October and the Halloween dance was quickly approaching. They never spoke about Miss Stewart's resemblance to Lily; however, Snape felt it like a heavy weight between him and Hermione. He had spoken to Miss Stewart and explained that he needed to spend Monday nights with his wife to fulfill the Ministry's stipulation regarding their copulation clause. His heart skipped a beat when Miss Stewart commented that Hermione was a lucky woman and pouted that she would only be able to see him on Tuesday and Thursday nights. He found that, as time went on, he thought more and more about Miss Stewart and less about Hermione. Even the birth of their children had become less important to him. He found himself looking forward to his tutoring sessions with Miss Stewart. They had moved their sessions to his office, which she declared to be more comfortable than his cold classroom. He would sit close to her and drink in every giggle, every pout, and every touch of her hand. She would lean towards him and he had to fight the urge to stare at her luscious lips as she spoke.

Even though he spent more time with his wife on Monday evenings, he found himself distracted by the thought of Miss Stewart and what she might be doing while he sat next to Hermione on the sofa as she completed her schoolwork. He would put off going to bed until the last minute and then rush through his weekly obligation with his wife. The rest of the week, he kept himself busy and always returned to their quarters too exhausted to entertain Hermione's sexual advances.

The week before the Halloween dance, things came to a head. Miss Stewart had made a comment about his teeth and how lovely he would be if he got them fixed. So, without even discussing it with his wife, Snape made an appointment with a specialist on Saturday and returned to Hogwarts with a radiant smile. Hermione had been shocked to say the least. They had gotten into an argument over it when Hermione accused him of fixing his teeth to impress Elizabeth. Hermione thought he had been perfect just the way he was. Snape accused her of trying to hold him back from reaching his full potential. He'd get his nose fixed too, if he damn well pleased. As usual, Hermione cried and begged him for his forgiveness. He graciously forgave her even though he was eaten up with guilt. Of course he had his teeth fixed for Miss Stewart. He couldn't wait for class on Monday, so she could see them. He almost wished he hadn't canceled their Monday night classes, just to suit Hermione.

As he expected, Elizabeth stopped by his classroom, Monday after dinner, and complimented him on his beautiful teeth. She declared him drop-dead gorgeous and he was tempted to take her in his arms and show her his gratitude for the complement. He asked her to stay for a cup of tea; however, she reminded him that he had his duties to perform and sailed out of his classroom. He waited as long as he could and then returned to his chambers, shortly before midnight and woke Hermione for a quick fuck. He knew she was getting tired of his lack of interest, when it came to making love to her, but he really couldn't find it in himself to care right now. As long as Elizabeth thought he was gorgeous, that's all that mattered to him.

Hermione had stopped by his office, unannounced, on Tuesday night and knocked before stepping inside. The smile fell off her face when she saw him sitting close to Miss Stewart, leaning towards her as he explained the difficulties of battling Inferi. Miss Stewart had just placed her hand over his, and Hermione could swear Severus was swooning over her. He caught his wife's angry stare and stood up, annoyed at the interruption as he glared at Hermione.

"What is it, Hermione? Can't you see I'm busy?" He asked testily.

Hermione saw Elizabeth smirk at her and threw her a hateful glare before turning back to her husband. "I came by to see if you needed help grading papers." Hermione said sweetly, hoping he would get the hint and get rid of Elizabeth so they could spend some quality time together.

Elizabeth gave a happy little laugh, causing Snape to smile at her. "As you can see, Mrs. Snape, Miss Elizabeth is already assisting me. We are in the middle of a tutoring session, so if you don't mind..." He crossed over to her and attempted to steer her out of his office.

"I wanted to spend time with you," Hermione whimpered.

Snape looked back as if checking to see if Elizabeth had heard what Hermione just said. Hermione wasn't fooled; she knew Elizabeth was probably hanging on every word.

"Why don't you go back to our quarters and have a nice dinner. I have a lot to do, and I'll try not to wake you when I come to bed tonight." He looked back anxiously at Elizabeth as if worried she would slip away while he spoke to Hermione.

"You didn't tell me you were tutoring Elizabeth. How long has this been going on?" Hermione said through gritted teeth.

"That is none of your business," Snape growled and pinched the bridge of his nose. _Why the fuck did Hermione have to show up on one of the only nights I have to spend with Elizabeth? Isn't Monday night enough for the little chit?_

Hermione heard Elizabeth giggle again and felt her face redden. She sobbed as she fled from the classroom.

Snape turned back towards Elizabeth, offered her a smile and shrugged his shoulders. He sat back down next to her, placed his arm on the back of her chair and purred, "Now where were we?"

She placed her hand back on his and leaned towards him. "Right about here."

Snape's eyes fluttered closed as she leaned in and placed her lips against his. Her kiss was soft and hesitant but increased in boldness when she felt him responding.

Snape pulled away and looked down into her lovely face. He was relishing their first kiss, wishing he'd been matched to her instead of Hermione, when his mind started screaming at him that he had just kissed a student. He leapt up and began pacing the floor, in horror of what he'd just done. They had just finished their tea and he had let his guard down.

Miss Stewart stood and blocked his path. "I'm so sorry, Professor. It's just that you're so damn sexy and I couldn't help myself...please forgive me."

She looked so miserable that his gaze softened and he found himself pulling her into his embrace. She clung to him and tried to initiate another kiss. Snape chastised himself again and gently pushed her away. He suddenly realized that if he didn't make her leave, he could very well make love to her right here on his office desk. She didn't look like she'd deny him that pleasure. He groaned and grabbed her bag, placing it in her arms and fairly pushed her out the door and through his classroom. She protested the entire way; however, he made it very clear that he didn't trust himself to be alone with her. She hovered in the doorway of his classroom and fixed him with her bedroom eyes. Snape groaned again and fought the urge to sod it all and just through caution to the wind. The image of Hermione sobbing as she ran from the classroom came to mind and he gently pushed Miss Stewart out the door with his apologies and closed the door behind her. He leaned on the door for a few minutes before dragging himself back to his office.

He began pacing in front of his office desk, his mind racing. Oh, how he wished he had been a free man, right now. Snape looked over at their tea cups and was about to use his wand to clean them. He smiled when he thought of how Elizabeth—his mind referring to her as Elizabeth more and more now—usually insisted on cleaning the cups... _Oh, how I love that girl._ His breath caught in his throat when he realized what he had just thought. _Where the hell had that thought come from?_

Every time he was with Elizabeth, he felt like his heart was going to explode out of his chest. When he wasn't in her presence, she was still in the back of his mind like a ghost that lingered just outside his peripheral vision. He frowned when he contemplated that he used to think himself falling in love with Hermione.

He stopped pacing and stared blankly at the wall. Now, all his thoughts and desires dwelled with Elizabeth...what had caused this change? He shook his head to clear his thoughts. Weeks of tutoring Elizabeth and slowly getting to know the charming girl, had done it, of course. She was so much like his sweet Lily. Maybe he would petition for a divorce as soon as he was allowed. Of course, that would have to happen before the end of December arrived and Elizabeth's fiancé would steal her away from him.

That thought alone angered him and he slammed his fist against his desk, rattling the teacups resting there. He had to find a way to have that beautiful young woman. He wanted to be the only one holding Elizabeth, the only one experiencing her soft kisses and come hither looks. He ran his hand through his hair in frustration. Why was fate always so cruel to him? He was meant to be with Elizabeth, he just knew it. He would have to come up with a plan.

Snape thought perhaps he should have another cup of tea to calm his nerves. He couldn't return to his chambers in this state of mind. He picked up his cup and froze when he saw sediment in the bottom of his cup. It was a very trace amount. He looked into Elizabeth's cup, but hers was sediment free.

Snape waved a diagnostic spell over his cup with his wand and the results hit him like a ton of bricks. Snape sank into the chair and felt as if he had been kicked in the stomach.

Amortentia...Elizabeth had slipped Amortentia, a very powerful love potion in his tea. It was tasteless and gave off a pearly sheen when in liquid form. However, once allowed to dry, it became a powdery substance. He continued staring into the cup, his mind unable to comprehend what was happening. There must be some mistake...sweet Elizabeth would never do that to him. No, his feelings for that lovely girl were real, weren't they? There was only one way to know for sure. Even though he taught Defense Against the Dark Arts now, he still kept his storage room stocked with potions.

Snape hastened to his storage room and climbed the ladder looking for the antidote to Amortentia. He pocketed the small vial, returned to his office and closed the door. His gaze landed on the offending teacup, resting innocently on his desk. Surely, Elizabeth the woman he was now so desperately in love with, could not have done such an unspeakable act. He uncorked the vial, and swallowed the contents in one gulp. He felt the effects of the antidote immediately and looked around the room with a clear head. He stormed over to the desk, snatched his teacup off the desk, and stared at the sediment on the bottom.

"Son of a bitch!" he roared and stormed out of his office.


	9. Chapter 9

Headmaster McGonagall was going over the budget, making minor adjustments, when Severus Snape stormed into her office and practically slammed a teacup on her desk. Her eyebrows rose towards her hairline when Snape began pacing her office, releasing a string of swear words that would make a sailor proud.

She pulled a bottle of scotch and two glasses from her desk drawer, and poured them each a generous amount, before demanding that he sit down and tell her what had his knickers all in a twist.

Snape swallowed the whisky, in two gulps, and asked for a refill before he laid the whole sorry mess at the Headmistresses' feet. He almost broke out in another fit of rage, when McGonagall assured him that she had not provided Miss Stewart with a note authorizing her to seek tutoring for Defense Against the Dark Arts.

"Damn it, Minerva, I was a spy for half my lifetime and I'm a Potions Master to boot. I can't believe a 17-year old girl was able to fool me like this. I was ready to throw caution to the wind and profess my love for the little chit," His nostrils flaring. "After all Hermione has done for me, I was ready to throw it all away."

"Severus, I'm sure I don't have to tell you, this is a very serious matter. Not only did she forge my signature, but she used a banned substance—against a Professor no less. Has Mrs. Snape noticed your odd behavior?"

Snape held his head in his hands and groaned as he fought the urge to weep. _My Hermione, my poor, sweet Hermione._ He struggled to pull himself together and assured McGonagall that his wife had indeed noticed and was probably packing her bags as they spoke.

"I don't deserve her, Minerva, we both know it. I should have been imprisoned after I raped her."

McGonagall shook her head, "Severus..."

"Let's call a spade a spade, Minerva. I assaulted that woman in the worst way possible, and yet she forgave me. She forgave me and enabled me to have a second chance. She has made my life happier than I ever imagined, and now this." Snape held his head in his hands and groaned. He looked up again when McGonagall huffed indignantly.

"Severus, I see the way Hermione looks at you, she is not about to throw you over due to this misunderstanding. It's imperative that you go speak with your wife. You need to tell her what happened," she stared at him over her glasses, "everything that happened."

"Merlin's beard, Minerva, I don't want her to go into premature labor, over this. She'll hunt Miss Stewart down and curse her forehead with the words, 'slut' or 'husband stealer' or something else so god awful, that the whole school will know what happened. Of course, that's after she punches Miss Stewart in the face."

Despite herself, McGonagall couldn't help but smile. It would serve Miss Stewart right to receive a little, tough justice. However, she agreed with Severus—she didn't want to risk Hermione's pregnancy. They both looked up when they heard Professor Dumbledore clear his throat, from his portrait on the wall.

"Don't judge yourself too harshly, Severus, I dare say, better men than you have had their lives ruined due to that dangerous potion. It's fortunate that you discovered it when you did. But the question remains dear boy, what are you going to do about it? As it stands, it will be your word against hers. You can file a complaint and have the Auror's administer Veritaserum; however, news like that always finds its way to the papers. The Board of Governors would clamor for your resignation."

Snape groaned in frustration. This was supposed to be his opportunity to prove to everyone that he was worth a damn. He felt so stupid for letting his guard down. He had hoped that after the war, he could have a normal life and not have to constantly look over his shoulders. His attention was drawn back to Dumbledore when he paused for effect.

"Of course, if you knew someone who was an Auror, someone you could trust, and someone who would not want this getting out and hurting Mrs. Snape...that would be the ideal person to call. This could all be handled internally and Miss Stewart would be expelled. The shame would lie solely with Miss Stewart," Dumbledore said with a benevolent smile as he looked down at them. McGonagall nodded in agreement.

With a heavy heart, Snape departed the Headmaster's office and dragged his weary body down to his chambers. He dreaded facing Hermione, tonight. He would have to tell her something. She said he could talk to her about this, however, for the sake of his children and her health; he would have to keep this a secret from her a little longer. He dreaded the moment he would have to tell her of his betrayal. She had been so forgiving of everything...would she be able to forgive him of this? His heart ached over the thought of losing her. Thinking clearly now, he knew that he would have preferred that she had let him die that night, in the shack, rather than spend the rest of his life without her. She had given him redemption, understanding and the true love that he had so longingly craved all his life. He would rather be dead than live without her.

* * *

Hermione awoke the next morning and rolled over to discover that Severus must have come home late during the night, climbed into bed without waking her, and left this morning without telling her goodbye. Her eyes felt swollen from crying herself to sleep and her heart ached every time she remembered what he had said to her in front of Elizabeth. She would just have to face the facts; her husband was in love with another woman and was sure to ask for a divorce as soon as the first opportunity was presented.

She decided to skip breakfast in the great hall, this morning, and asked Gussie to bring some breakfast to her. She was in no mood to watch her husband stare longingly at another woman.

Snape sat at the head table and let his hair hang down, like a curtain around his face, as he stared out at Miss Stewart.

He couldn't believe that stupid chit had been drugging him with a love potion. No wonder she had been the only thing he could think about since their tutoring lessons began. For the first time in almost two months, he was thinking clearly. What the hell was he going to do? Dumbledore was right; it would be her word against his. A pensieve would show that he had kissed the damn girl last night. He suppressed a groan when he remembered Hermione running from the room in tears. His poor, sweet Hermione; he had treated her like dragon dung the past several weeks. Spending Monday evenings with her while wishing it had been with Miss Stewart. Even when they had sex, it was resigned to strictly Monday nights and he had kept the act as quick as possible and thought of Miss Stewart the entire time.

Snape remembered that he now had the upper hand. He would contact someone who he had hoped he would never need a favor from and ask him for one. In the meantime, he had to keep Miss Stewart from becoming suspicious. He purposely looked up and fixed Miss Elizabeth with what he hoped was a seductive stare. She looked up, and gave him her come hither stare, in return. Snape wanted to vomit. He felt Ginny Potter's gaze upon him and turned to see her glaring at him in reproach. He returned her glare, before excusing himself from the table and slipping out the staff door. He headed towards the Headmaster's officer to make the call he was dreading with every fiber of his being.

When he entered McGonagall's office, he proceeded straight to the fireplace and activated the Floo. He called out the name of the person he was seeking and waited for his face to appear.

"Good morning, Professor Snape, what can I do for you, this morning?"

"Dispense with the pleasantries, Potter, I need you to Floo over to the Headmistresses' office this morning. I...uhm...need your assistance with something. It's of the upmost importance, and I would appreciate it if you told no one where you were going." Snape said through thin lips, hating that he had to make this call.

Harry looked at him in alarm and assured him that he was on his way. Snape moved to the other side of the desk and sat down. In the old days, he would have been tempted to just Obliviate the young witch and be done with her...after he cursed her with incurable acne, of course. He smiled when he imagined that scenario and stood up when Harry stepped through the Floo and dusted off his robes.

"Wow, it sounded pretty important, Professor. I hope Hermione is okay. She's not ill is she?" Harry asked in alarm.

Snape waved away his concern, "no, Hermione is just fine, or at least she will be once you have helped me take care of a small predicament I find myself in." Snape indicated the chair next to him, and waited for Harry to sit; before he lowered himself back into his chair. Swallowing what little pride he felt he had left, Snape told Harry the whole story, with Dumbledore inserting things he had left out, unfortunately. Snape glared up at Dumbledore and turned back to see Harry smiling at him.

"What's so funny, Potter?" he asked with a sneer.

"You have to admit, Professor, if this happened to me, instead of you—you'd be laughing your ass off right now." Harry said with a huge grin.

"This is no laughing matter, Potter," Snape snarled, "Do you have any idea what would happen to Hermione if she found out about this, in her delicate condition? I love that woman and I'll be damned if some little, snot-nosed, Gryffindor brat causes her to go into premature labor."

The smile fell off of Harry's face, "oh, well, when you put it like that, I guess it really isn't that funny. Ginny would be furious. She'd choke the life out of Miss Stewart."

"That's exactly what I fear Hermione would do. You know Hermione better than anyone, that woman has a temper and knows how to get even," Snape insisted, with a small twisted smile. It secretly pleased him that Hermione had a little Slytherin in her.

"Ah, yeah, that Hermione...I do remember. Okay, we need to administer Veritaserum to Miss Stewart and force her to confess in front of Headmaster McGonagall. That will give McGonagall the authority to expel her, and seeing as how I am an Auror, I can administer the serum."

"Which is why I called you, Potter," Snape said rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"Right, okay, I've got a plan."

"I'm all ears," Snape growled.

Hermione dragged her weary body from class to class, doing enough in each to keep the Professors from insisting that she go see Madam Pomphrey. Her last appointment with the kind Mediwitch had shown that her babies were healthy. Of course, she had gone alone, because Severus was too wrapped up in his own little world to be there.

No, there was no cure for what she was suffering from. It took everything in her to ignore Elizabeth's smirks and hushed whispers whenever she was in her proximity. She wondered if the Ministry would sentence a pregnant woman to Azkaban for killing her husband's girlfriend...surely they made allowances for such a thing. Hermione pushed aside her strong desire to extract revenge. She feared any retaliation against Elizabeth would drive Severus farther away than he already was, so she just suffered in silence. She noticed the other students would be whispering excitedly, until they saw her and quickly become silent, some of them going so far as to avoid making eye contact with her. Something was definitely going on; however, in her state of mind, Hermione was too distraught to give a damn.

Hermione decided to skip lunch in the great hall and take her lunch in her quarters, same as breakfast. It wasn't like her husband would notice her absence anyway. She just wanted to eat and then fall into a deep sleep. She knew she was slipping into depression, when she realized that all she wanted to do was go to sleep and never wake up. She was just so damned tired. She inhaled the lunch Gussie provided and asked the kind house elf to wake her in time for her Transfiguration class. _Sod study period, why bother?_ She thought, bitterly, _It's not I have a future, anyway._ One of the babies kicked her rib and she placed her hand against her stomach, silently apologizing for being so silly...of course she had a future. She was just too tired to think about it right now. She climbed onto her bed and quickly fell asleep.

Snape stared out at the Gryffindor table, during lunch, and was alarmed to see that Hermione wasn't sitting at the table, next to Ginny. This was the second time she had skipped eating in the great hall today. He looked down at his plate and hoped she was okay. He would stop by their quarters and check on her after lunch. Hopefully she was catching up on her sleep. If she was awake, he'd have to speak with her. Even though he did not want to inform Hermione of what had occurred with Elizabeth, he would rather just lay it all in the open before her and beg for forgiveness. He'd be careful to keep her calm. He'd rather she be angry at him over his lack of vigilance than to have her think that he cared more about another woman than he cared about her. He remembered Hermione crying, months ago; when she thought he would divorce her, at the first chance, and knew he should be ashamed for taking pleasure from her fears. The fact that she wanted to stay married to him, because she thought he was worth a damn, meant more to him than anything. No one had ever thought that highly of him, before.

He fought the urge to glare out at Miss Stewart and fixed a small smile on his face when he glanced at her, instead. Ginny was absent from the table, as well, but Potter had already said that she was struggling with bouts of nausea. He supplied Potter with a couple vials of the same potion he brewed for Hermione. Hopefully, it would make Ginny Potter feel better, and in her gratefulness, not judge him too harshly when she learned of his predicament.

He knew Harry and Ginny didn't keep secrets from one another. Ginny was Harry's confidant, just like Hermione use to be his. Oh how he wished he had talked with his wife when he first started having feelings for Elizabeth and was enamored with how much the young woman had resembled Lily Evans. Hermione was intelligent. She may even have figured out what was happening before he did. Of course, once she did, she would have hexed Miss Stewart into next year. Thinking of his intelligent, beautiful wife brought a small smile to his face and soothed his aching heart.

Snape excused himself to the other staff members at the head table and rushed down to their quarters to check on Hermione. Once there, he crept quietly into their bedroom and observed his wife, curled up in the fetal position, fast asleep. He smiled when he thought of how lovely she looked lying there. His breath caught in his throat as he resisted the urge to march over, sweep her into his arms and cradle her against his chest. He had put this lovely woman through so much, these past several weeks. She deserved so much better than him. There was one thing he knew for sure as he approached the bed quietly and leaned down to place a soft kiss on her forehead. He was never, ever going to let this woman go. Once this was all over, he would make sure this beautiful woman knew, every day, how much she meant to him. Somehow, she had become his whole world. He turned and silently departed their chambers—he had classes to teach and an evil, vile creature to confront and destroy. When he was done with her, Miss Stewart would regret ever being born or having the audacity to mess with, former death eater, Severus Snape.

Hermione felt Severus kiss her gently upon her forehead and waited until he left before hugging her pillow in despair. How could he kiss her so tenderly when he was apparently infatuated with Elizabeth? Was it possible to hate that you loved someone with all your heart? She wished she could take her heart back from him and surround it with a shielding charm that nothing or no one could penetrate. She was such a pathetic mess. She knew in her heart that she would never stop loving him, even if it meant that all she would ever receive from him was crumbs of his affection.

That night, Hermione ate dinner in her quarters again and spent the evening catching up on the studying she should have done during study period. She was hoping to see Severus before going to bed, and was rewarded for her diligence when he quietly slipped into their quarters, later that night. He seemed surprised that she was still up.

His look of surprise was replaced with a look of desire as he immediately crossed the room to pull her into his warm embrace and kiss her on the lips. She wanted to be angry at him, but she just couldn't—it felt too good to be held in his arms. Her large, protruding stomach, kept her from getting as close as she wanted to be to him, but if she turned slightly sideways, it was almost as good.

"Hermione, I have been a little short with you recently, for reasons I can't fully divulge right now, but I want you to know that I do truly care for you. You are everything to me."

Hermione fought back the tears that threatened to spill and buried her face in his robes, soaking up his words like a sponge soaks up water. His words pierced her wounded heart and she felt almost giddy with joy.

"Hermione, please look at me," he pleaded softly. She pulled back slightly and stared up longingly into his dark eyes. She drank in the sight of his imperfect nose and soft, beautiful hair that hung down and tickled her face as he moved his lips closer to hers.

"I want to...to..." he growled and captured her lips with his in a passionate, almost desperate kiss. She kissed him back with everything that was within her. He bent down, scooped her up into his arms, carried her into their bedroom, and laid her down on the bed. He quickly undressed her and after hurriedly ridding himself of all his clothes, proceeded to make slow, passionate love to her, late into the night.

* * *

Hermione awoke the next morning, to Gussie gently shaking her shoulder. She pulled the covers up to her chin, to ward off the chill, and looked over at the anxious house elf. Gussie had set a breakfast tray on the nightstand, before waking her, and now stood next to the bed with big, expressive eyes.

"Professor Snape is saying that yous must get up now. He is saying that yous must eat a good breakfast and bees on time to class." The sweet elf hesitated and shifted from one foot to another. Hermione swore the house elf's cheeks reddened when she added, "and Professor is saying that he luvs yous." The elf let out a small giggle before bowing and disappearing with a small 'pop.'

Hermione's breath caught in her throat as her eyes began to water. The thought of her husband, Mr. Grumpy, swallowing his pride long enough to give Gussie that message for her made her heart soar. She was on cloud nine, until she looked over at the clock and groaned when she saw the time. She was hoping to eat breakfast in the great hall this morning and tell Ginny that Severus had made love to her all night long. Of course she was sure that Elizabeth would overhear, since she was a nosy little chit, and hoped the girl would eat her heart out. Her husband might be infatuated with that stupid Lily want-to-be, but she would never experience what Hermione received from Severus last night.

Hermione reached her first class on time and used that opportunity to let Elizabeth overhear that Snape had left his bed this morning, sexually satisfied. Ginny stared at her as if she could have lived her whole lifetime without hearing about that. Hermione pretended not to notice that Elizabeth, had indeed, overheard. However, she could feel the jealous girl's stare attempting to bore through her throughout the remainder of their classes.

Hermione even made it a point to eat lunch in the great hall and steal quick glances at her husband. She saw that Elizabeth was still trying to get Severus to look at her, but she really didn't care. Let the stupid bitch look at Severus all she wanted, she'd never take him away from her. Severus had been especially vocal last night, during their lovemaking, telling her how much he loved her and that she was the only woman he would ever love. Her entire body tingled with the memory of feeling so safe and loved in his arms.

Severus was careful to ensure that Hermione wasn't looking when he threw Elizabeth little smiles. He also blessed Hermione with a few smiles when Elizabeth was preoccupied with her seat mate's conversation. By the time lunch was over, Snape's cheeks hurt from smiling so much. _Who would be fool enough to court two women at once?_ He thought on his way back to his classroom. _Just ensuring that Hermione knew she was loved and pretending to be infatuated with Miss Stewart was wearing him out. Who would subject themselves to pleasing more than one woman?_

Hermione entered her Defense Against the Dark Arts class with a sense of trepidation. She knew that Severus loved her more than he liked Elizabeth, however, that didn't mean she wanted to see him be nice to the little twit. She was relieved to see that he ignored both of them equally as he roamed around the classroom and lectured them on today's lesson. They all took notes as he spoke.

Hermione put her mind to the task and didn't risk a side glance at Severus until class was almost over and he had sat down behind his desk. She was thrilled to see the look of desire he directed at her and bowed her head in embarrassment. He'd practically undressed her with his eyes, in front of the whole class, no less. Hermione missed the fact that he proceeded to fix Miss Stewart with the same look, causing her to look back at him with the same expression.

Snape dismissed the class and leaned back in his chair, after the last student fled from the room. Miss Stewart had the nerve to stare at him like she wanted to devour him during his entire lesson. The only chance he had to reassure Hermione was when she glanced up at him. Of course, he had to give Miss Stewart the same look, or she would have gotten suspicious and Potter's plan would go up in smoke. His third year students filed in and he pushed all thoughts aside as he prepared to force knowledge into their less than eager brains.

Dinner in the great hall was uneventful, as he concentrated on conversing with his fellow staff members at the table and refused to look towards the Gryffindor table.

Right before dinner was over, he used his hair to conceal his face as he finally looked in their direction. He noticed that Hermione was in deep discussion with Ginny Potter as the younger woman seemed to devour everything that wasn't nailed down. Thankfully, his potion was working for the young woman and she was able to eat again. He used that opportunity to make eye contact with Miss Stewart who he was sure had been staring at him during the entire meal. He threw her a small, seductive smile and received one in return, before excusing himself from the table. He didn't miss McGonagall's knowing look and smirked at her. Tonight was the night they were going to hand out some well-deserved justice.


	10. Chapter 10

Later that evening, Harry and McGonagall were sitting comfortably in Snape's office while he loitered in his classroom, waiting for Miss Stewart to appear for her tutoring session. She arrived on time and headed towards his office. Snape called out to her to stop as they were going to be studying in the classroom.

"You are quite lovely, Miss Stewart, I do not trust myself to be locked away in my office with you." Snape said smoothly as he sat down in one of the chairs.

Elizabeth smiled seductively at him and assured him, once again, that she wouldn't mind. Snape thought he heard McGonagall make a scoffing noise. He reached out and patted the chair next to him, hoping the girl hadn't heard the small sound.

She swayed her hips as she walked over to stand in front of him and he patted the chair again. She smiled and dropped down in the chair crossing her legs. Snape noticed that she had somehow shortened the length of her skirt. He looked away from her long legs and focused on the plan.

"Hermione was bragging today that she left you sexually satisfied when you left her bed this morning," she said with little pout. Snape kept his features blank as his heart swelled with pride. He fought the urge to sneer when she added, "I wish you'd let me prove to you that I could make you forget all about her."

"I noticed that Mrs. Snape has been acting rudely towards you. I must apologize for her behavior; she is rather smitten with me, the poor thing." Only his years as a spy enabled him to say that in a silky voice.

Elizabeth laughed a soft, tinkling laugh. "It must be tough having an overweight wife who is as huge as a whale and still be expected to do your...husbandly duties," she finished almost shyly with a flush creeping into her cheeks.

Snape narrowed his eyes at her, "Hermione is not overweight...she's pregnant." He frowned at her; Lily would have never criticized someone like that, especially when Hermione's pregnancy was as obvious as the nose on his face.

"Oh, I meant no disrespect, Professor," she said with large frightened eyes, as she reached out and placed her hand over his. He was so surprised at the blatant contact that he failed to move her hand or admonish her. "I wasn't trying to be hurtful. It's just that anyone can see you married her out of pity. You are an attractive man; forgive me for saying that you could have done much better...especially if the Ministry had allowed you to wait for someone, uhm, more suited to your attractiveness."

He swallowed his overwhelming desire to tell Miss Stewart what a piece of shit she was. How dare she even say those things about his precious Hermione? This little twit wasn't worthy to even speak her name. He smiled at her and agreed that it was indeed a pity.

Harry sat in the office and kept his hand over his mouth to keep from laughing every time McGonagall rolled her eyes at what the girl in the other room was dishing out. He heard Snape say something about fetching them some tea and looked over at the tea set on the desk. Harry quickly poured two cups of tea and set the teapot back on the serving tray, just as Snape slipped inside and headed towards it. He held up one hand, to keep Snape from snatching up the tray and added three drops of Veritaserum from the small vial he carried inside his robes. He quietly indicated to Snape that the pink cup held the serum and the blue cup was for him. Snape's hands shook with barely controlled rage as he snatched up the tray. He wanted to throttle the woman in the next room. McGonagall replied to his glare with a small smirk, before Snape turned and slipped back out into the classroom bearing the tray and fixing a smile upon his face.

"Here we go, Miss Stewart, delicious tea, just as I promised. He placed the tray on the desk beside them and turned it so the pink cup was facing her. He reached for his cup when Miss Stewart suddenly blurted that she had forgotten her textbook back in her room and could they just use his copy tonight.

Snape graciously stood to retrieve the book and heard slight rustling behind him. He was certain she was taking that opportunity to spike his tea. This was how she had ensnared him in the first place.

He pretended to search for the book until he heard the rustling stop, before snatching up the book and returning to his chair. Miss Stewart smiled seductively at him and unbuttoned her blouse to show more cleavage. Snape gulped audibly and wished she would just drink the damn tea. She was reaching for her cup when his classroom door slammed open and an enraged Hermione Snape stormed into the room.

* * *

Hermione was in their quarters thinking about the night before and decided she would wait up for Severus again. She would give him something to put Elizabeth out his mind. He loved the way she sucked him off. _I'll drain that man dry,_ she thought wryly as she stood and stretched her aching muscles. It was such a mild night. She would take a stroll out to the courtyard, for some fresh air, and then return for a hot soak in the tub before her husband returned.

Hermione was nearing the courtyard when Professor Sanguine stepped out of the shadows and surprised her. He quickly apologized for alarming her and assured her he meant no harm. He fell in step beside her and she was in such a good mood that she didn't mind him joining her on a stroll.

"How is Severus doing, Mrs. Snape?" He asked quietly, glancing sideways at her as they walked.

"He's fine, why do you ask?"

"Severus was always such a loner. I mean he had Lily as a friend. Everyone knew he loved her, hell, everyone loved her. You know, she was a lot like you." He confided.

"How do you mean?" She asked, not sure she liked where this was going.

"Well, you're brilliant, caring and extremely beautiful. I was glad to hear that after all Severus had suffered, he had finally found someone to outshine his boyhood crush. He does appear to be quire smitten with you, which is why the rumors are so disturbing. I personally don't believe what she is claiming..."

"What claims, who is claiming...I'm sorry, what exactly are you trying to tell me?" Hermione had come to a stop and he turned to face her.

"Well, it's just that one hears things and I was wondering how he was handling all the rumors, I mean I am confident they aren't true; however one never likes to be the subject of such scandalous gossip." He said softly, "Severus doesn't deserve to have his reputation tarnished in such a manner."

"What rumor are you talking about, Professor? I haven't heard any rumors, regarding my husband." She said, stepping closer to him.

Sanguine appeared shocked and suddenly looked away in obvious embarrassment.

"I apologize, Mrs. Snape. You seemed so distraught yesterday; that I surely thought you had heard the rumors."

"What rumors, Professor?" Hermione hissed reaching into her robes, "don't make me pull my wand on you. I am six months pregnant and hormonal...not one member of the Wizengamot would condemn me."

Sanguine held his hands up in a show of surrender. "Forgive me, Mrs. Snape. Miss Elizabeth Stewart has been spreading about the school that your husband kissed her during their study lesson on Tuesday night and that Severus is in love with her. She has gone so far as to say that he is planning on asking for a divorce from you so that he can be with her. As a matter of fact, I overheard her telling Miss Allen that she plans on going all the way with Severus, tonight."

"Oh, she did, did she? Well, we'll just see about that!" Hermione snarled, turned on her heel and stormed up the corridor towards her husband's classroom.

Professor Sanguine watched her race away and found himself impressed with the young woman. He would have to change his opinion of her. She was no Lily Evans that was for sure. This woman was a hellcat. She would definitely keep his old friend on his toes. He smiled as he turned away; thinking fate had given Severus Snape just what he needed in a mate. His guilt over being the one to tell her about the rumors quickly subsided. Miss Stewart had started a nasty rumor and deserved whatever punishment Mrs. Snape doled out to her. He whistled as he walked back up the corridor, hopefully, the Ministry would find him a mate like Hermione Snape by the time the deadline rolled around. Severus was indeed a lucky man.

Snape and Elizabeth jumped to their feet when Hermione stormed into the room. Snape was alarmed to see how angry Hermione was. It appeared as if her soft curls were becoming frizzy and were actually giving off sparks.

"How dare you spread rumors about my husband, you vile, disgusting, little worm," Hermione shouted as she advanced on the shocked girl.

Harry and McGonagall both leapt to their feet; however, they hesitated to enter the classroom and blow Snape's chance to get to the truth.

"How dare you tell Katherine that my husband kissed you!"

"He did kiss me, Hermione, ask him yourself. He kissed me and he loved it." Elizabeth fairly sang with a smug grin.

Snape groaned audibly and wished the floor would just open up and swallow him.

"I'll deal with you later," Hermione hissed at Snape before turning back towards Elizabeth and pointing a finger in her face.

"He may have kissed you, but he will never love you like he loves me. You can get that little fantasy of shagging him out of your mind, right now. That is never going to happen. Severus has too much class to sully himself with filth like you." Hermione snarled, shaking with rage.

Snape froze when Elizabeth slapped Hermione across the face. He shook with rage as he moved to grab Elizabeth and shake the shit out of her; however, Hermione had reared back and punched the girl in the face so hard she stumbled and fell against his desk. Snape heard the crunch of Elizabeth's nose breaking when Hermione's fist made contact.

"You broke my nose, you cow!" Elizabeth cried as she clutched her nose. "You're just too stupid to realize he doesn't want your fat ass anymore." Her glare turned to fear when Hermione lunged at her.

Snape sprung into action and grabbed onto Hermione to keep her from killing the stupid twit.

Hermione became a wild animal in his arms. He was amazed at her strength as she struggled against him and let loose with a slew of curse words that shocked him. Snape realized that he had lost control of the situation and called out to Potter.

"Damn it, Potter, get out here!"

Harry raced into the room and wrapped his arms around Hermione, pulling her aside. She clung to him and wept uncontrollably as he whispered soothing words in her ear and rubbed her back.

McGonagall took Miss Stewart's arm, guided her back to her seat, and transfigured a towel for her bleeding nose. She turned to Snape and they quietly argued about what they were going to do now. Snape looked over at Hermione and felt like a heel. He should have told her about the kiss. She deserved to hear it from him, not the stupid twit that was smiling deviously at him as she sipped her tea.

Snape nudged McGonagall; she looked over to see Miss Stewart drinking her tea and smirking in their direction. Harry guided Hermione behind Snape's desk and gently pushed her down into the chair. It wouldn't hurt to have something between her and the smug little hussy that was looking at them now as if she was the cat that just ate the canary.

"What do you have to say for yourself, Miss Stewart?" McGonagall asked with an intense glare.

"What? I think I was very clever. I managed to fool the great Severus Snape." Her eyes snapped open wide as she realized what she had just admitted.

"What have you been adding to his tea, during each of your study lessons?" McGonagall continued with her grilling.

"I added a drop of Amortentia to his tea, every time we met for our tutoring sessions." She admitted, unable to keep the words from spilling out. "I wanted him to come to the belief that he loved me and divorce his wife." She paused as if contemplating her words. "It should have worked long before now. He must love his wife more than I realized—I should have added two drops."

Hermione gasped and Harry squeezed her shoulder gently. He knew Hermione would be happy to learn that her husband hadn't been truly in love with another woman.

"Miss Stewart, why would you do such a thing?" McGonagall asked as she stared at the girl in disbelief.

"My father died in Azkaban, because of him. He was a damn death eater, just like my father. However, he made up some stupid story about being on the side of the light," Elizabeth spit angrily. "He doesn't deserve to live happily ever after with a woman who obviously loves him and worships the ground he walks on."

Snape glanced over at Hermione and basked in the smile she bestowed upon him. He never thought he'd have someone love him to that extent, but his wife obviously did.

His attention Snapped back to Miss Stewart when she continued.

"I heard about his fascination with Lilly Potter. I've been told that I look like her, so I colored my hair red and changed my eye color to match hers. No one remembered that I use to have brown, mousy hair and blue eyes."

"Wait a minute," Harry interjected, "I remember you. You use to sit in the corner of the common room and make snide little comments about Hermione being the Gryffindor Princess."

Hermione stared at her and realized Harry was right. She went by the name, Beth, back then. She didn't socialize with any of the other girls and seemed to keep to herself, when she wasn't slandering Hermione. Hermione had tried to talk to her once, but Beth just blew her off. Hermione had chalked it up to jealousy and just ignored the girl. It made sense that if her father was a death eater, she would hate everything Hermione and her friends stood for. _How did I not see it?_ Hermione wondered. _Because you couldn't get past the thought that she looked like Lily Potter,_ her inner voice whispered.

"What was your plan, in the event that you did succeed in taking Professor Snape from his wife?" McGonagall asked.

"I would have insisted that he marry me and we'd move far away from here. I would have made the rest of his life a living hell. He'd still love me, but he would slowly come to hate the very sight of Lily Potter. It would be too late by then. He'd be my husband and regret his miserable existence, every day. Oh, I'd stop giving him the love potion one day, so he could see how royally he had screwed his life up. He'd cry for Hermione every day and I'd tell him he did it to himself." Elizabeth finished smugly and stared at Snape with pure loathing.

Snape shuddered at the thought of being married to that horrid creature and knowing that he would indeed cry over the loss of Hermione and his sons every day. He slumped down in the nearest chair, when he realized how close he had come to making her vision of his future a reality.

Hermione grabbed Harry's hand and he helped her to her feet so she could scoot around the desk and wrap her arms around Severus. He felt her arms reach around him and wrapped his arms around her, placing his head against her stomach and felt comforted by her embrace.

Harry saw Elizabeth reach inside her robe and whip out her wand. Snape leapt to his feet and whipped Hermione around, shielding her with his body.

"Avada—" The hex never came, as Harry cried, "Expelliarmus!" and disarmed the girl, sending her hurtling back in her chair, before she could finish saying the killing curse. Her wand flew over their heads and Harry snatched it out of the air. McGonagall gasped and clutched her throat in shock at the girl's attempted murder of Hermione Snape.

"Sorry, Professor, but this has just become an official matter," Harry declared as he used his wand to send his Patronus to the Ministry. He requested that Headmistress McGonagall go to her office and open the Floo to allow the Auror's, he had just summoned, to come through. McGonagall nodded and hurried from the room.

Hermione began sobbing as she realized just how close her husband came to being killed, because he was shielding her. She clung to him and shook uncontrollably. Snape sat down and pulled her into his lap and held her against him, comforting her with small kisses on her face and loving words whispered in her ear. He hoped she didn't go into labor; this was upsetting, even for him. The thought of losing Hermione made him want to choke the life out of the furious girl that was shooting death threats at them with her eyes.

Elizabeth leapt to her feet, but Harry hit her with a stunning spell, resulting in her collapsing onto the floor.

A few minutes later, two Auror's raced into the room, with their wands drawn, closely followed by a harrowed-looking McGonagall. Nothing like this had ever happened in Hogwarts before and it just had to happen on her watch. Poor Severus, he could have been killed tonight.

Harry spoke to the Auror's quietly. The two Auror's nodded in agreement, before standing the girl up on her feet, placing a binding spell on her and carrying her from the classroom. Harry walked over to them and crouched down so he would be eye level with Hermione.

"She is going to be charged with using a banned substance and attempting to use the killing curse to murder you. We'll do our best to keep this out of the papers, but I can't promise anything." He moved to stand, but Snape reached out and grabbed his arm. Harry looked up at him in surprise.

"Thank you, Harry," Snape said, his voice thick with emotion, "for everything."

Harry nodded with a small smile and raced out of the room to inform Ginny. He didn't want her to find out from someone else. Unlike Hermione, her pregnancy hormones affected her temper instead of her emotions. She didn't cry, she got angry, and then she got even.

Snape lifted Hermione in his arms and sighed when she wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him as he carried her back to their quarters. He set her down on the sofa and peeled her arms off him, quietly explaining that he was going to get her some tea. She sniffed and nodded her head, biting her bottom lip. He leaned over and used his thumb to pull her lip from between her teeth. She looked up at him with tears in his eyes. Suddenly, he wanted nothing more than to snatch her back up in his arms and never let her go.

There was a knock at their portal and Snape bid them enter. Ginny ran in and practically threw herself into Hermione's outstretched arms. They sat on the couch clinging to one another. Ginny was wearing a robe and looked as if she had leapt out of bed and ran the entire way to their quarters. Snape was strangely comforted by the thought that his wife had such a loyal friend.

Ginny looked up at him with pure rage on her face as Hermione quietly laid her head against her shoulder.

"Harry just told me what happened. I'm sorry I doubted you, Professor. Ohhh..." Ginny shook with rage. "I wish I could have gotten my hands on that little trollop. They would have carried her out in pieces."

Hermione giggled against Ginny's shoulder, obviously enjoying the sound of Miss Stewart being torn to pieces. Snape took that opportunity to call Gussie and ask her to bring them some calming tea and the little biscuits Hermione loved.

Gussie set the tray down, looked over at Hermione and burst out in tears as she ran towards the women and wrapped her scrawny little arms around Hermione. Ginny sat back and gazed down at the elf with a small smile on her face. Snape fought not to roll his eyes at the emotional women, elf included.

"Gussies jus hears what that bad, bad, witch bees doing to poor, poor Missess Snape. Gussie bees wanting to hit bad, bad witch with pan right now, even if Gussie has to iron her hands. Missess Snape is always being kind to Gussie."

Hermione dried her tears and patted Gussie on the back, ensuring her that the Aurors now had the bad witch and she would get what was coming to her. Gussie seemed to be satisfied with this bit of news and released Hermione before bowing and disappearing with a soft 'pop.'

Snape insisted that both girls drink the tea and eat the biscuits while he went to check on the Headmistress. He was sure she would be in a nervous state by now. He kissed Hermione on her lips and ignored Ginny Potter when she puckered up like she expected a kiss as well.

"Impertinent witch," he mumbled as he exited the room and was pleased to hear their laughter follow him out the door.

The Headmistress was pacing around her office when he entered.

"Oh, Severus," she cried and began weeping. Snape crossed the room and embraced her. He patted her on the back until she regained her composure, and then released her so she could sit down in her office chair. He sat, down across from her desk and they discussed what they would do if the whole story was leaked to the press.

It was late when Snape returned to his quarters. Ginny had already returned to her room, and was probably curled up with her husband. He smirked when he saw that his own wife had fallen asleep on the couch. After the day she had, she was probably too tired to make the short journey to their bed.

He undressed before gently lifting his wife in his arms. He carried her into their room to undress her and tuck her under the covers before he extinguished the lights and joined her. No matter what the papers printed, he realized they had both suffered worse and knew that they would get through this together.

He shuddered at the memory of Miss Stewart pulling her wand on Hermione. He could have easily lost her and both their babies, tonight. Thank God, Harry had been there tonight. Snape knew he could have easily been the one to die, since he had shielded Hermione with his body. The thought of Hermione raising their two sons, alone, made his chest ache. He pulled her up against him and fell asleep with her tucked safely in his arms.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Harry Potter. I did not want to dwell too much on Elizabeth in this chapter. They will discuss her more in another chapter.

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Surprisingly, the only thing that appeared in the papers the next morning was a small article declaring that a student had been taken from Hogwarts the night before, due to a nervous breakdown. The article didn't give a name, but stated that the student was being treated at St. Mungos.

Snape released the breath he didn't realize he was holding and set the paper next to his plate as he stared towards the Gryffindor table and sought out his wife. She had just set her paper aside and looked up at him with a huge grin. He smiled back at her and tucked into his breakfast, feeling happier than he had in a long time.

The night of the Halloween ball, Snape was pleased that his thoughts were filled with his loving wife and not focused on the past. During previous years, he had been so fixated on it being the anniversary of Lily's death. However, tonight his thoughts were with his wife who had insisted that he don an outfit that made him look more like a pirate than a professor, while she dressed like a very pregnant wench. The top of her gown was white, hung off her shoulders and accentuated her bosom. The bottom of the gown was a long green skirt that flowed over her protruding stomach and fell to her ankles. Her hair hung down in soft curls that framed her lovely face. She looked liked a woman you would see on the front of a romance novel.

Snape's heart swelled with pride when he observed her moving about with her friends, laughing and enjoying the food. He was returning from one of his patrols when he spotted Sanguine in the corner staring at Hermione with a barely disguised leer. Snape fixed his old friend with a glare. Sanguine turned to see Snape's heated glare and retreated quickly to conduct his patrol. Snape had visited Sanguine's classroom, after classes the day before and had a quiet little talk with him. Snape smirked to himself when he remembered it was actually a threatening little talk that had his old friend quaking in his boots.

Snape swiftly crossed the great hall, which had been transformed for the party and wrapped his arm around Hermione's waist when he reached her side. She looked up at him with a gasp of surprise that quickly turned into a huge smile and leaned into him.

"Nice costume," Harry said with a small grin. "I think this is the first time I've ever seen you wear something other than teaching robes to this event."

"Well, Potter, my wife insisted, so I reluctantly obliged." He said in his silky voice before leaning down and placing a small chaste kiss on his wife's upturned lips. She smiled up at him and Snape thought his heart would burst with pride.

"Awww, you guys make such a cute couple," Ginny said before stuffing a pastry in her mouth. She was standing next to her husband and inhaling a plate of desserts she held in her hand. Ginny was dressed as a queen, in a long flowing gown. The tiara sitting upon her red hair sparkled whenever she moved. Harry was dressed as a King, crown and all. Snape smirked at the couple when he saw them constantly readjusting their headgear. At least his wife had allowed him to forgo a hat.

"Geez, Ginny, save some for the rest of us," Ron Weasley said as he appeared next to Hermione. Ron was wearing a cape and what Snape assumed were fangs from his joke shop.

"Ron!" Hermione squealed as she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, without removing her arm from around her husband. "When did you get here?"

"Just now," Ron beamed. "Lavender is grabbing us some food...that is if there is any left." He said with a smile at his sister. Ginny just rolled her eyes and continued eating her desserts.

"I'm surprised you are not currently stuffing your face with food, Weasley," Snape drawled, earning him a slight pinch from his wife.

"Nah, Lavender knows what I like. She'll bring me something good. I saw you guys over here and wanted to say, hi. Damn, you look good Hermione." He whispered in awe, looking her up and down. Feeling Snape's glare on him he quickly added, "and healthy...good and healthy."

Hermione laughed and punched him playfully on the arm. Lavender appeared with a large tray of food. Ron took it from her and began stuffing his mouth as if he were afraid it would disappear. Lavender laughed at him and playfully tousled his hair.

"You look good, Lavender," Hermione said sweetly, "I'm glad you guys could make it."

"Thanks, Hermione," Lavender said graciously, eyeing Hermione's fetching outfit. She adjusted the cape around her shoulders and smiled to show off her fake fangs. "I wouldn't want to miss this for the world, and can I say marriage suits you, Hermione and you too Professor."

"Thank you," Hermione replied before turning to accept another small kiss from her besotted husband. Snape turned to see Lavender Weasley looking him up and down. He suddenly felt uncomfortable as if she were undressing him with her eyes. He pulled Hermione closer to him to block the young woman's view of his black, leather pants. Lavender sighed and turned her attention back to Ron.

"They're bringing out more desserts," Ginny squealed excitedly as she noticed the tables magically refilling themselves.

"That's my cue," Harry said with a mock grimace. He nodded towards the table and Snape extracted his arm from around Hermione, reluctantly, and accompanied him.

"I just wanted you to know that Miss Stewart is crazier than a beg bug, so to speak." Snape's eyebrows rose at Harry's muggle expression. "She has been obliterated and sent to live with her Aunt, where she'll finish her schooling at Beauxbaton's. The Ministry will be keeping a close eye on her to assure that she doesn't suffer a relapse. I was present while they gave her some false memories of wanting to attend there instead of Hogwarts, where she found it to be completely boring."

"What of her Fiancé?" Snape asked, suddenly remembering she was engaged to a local businessman.

"He was matched to a wealthy widow, and is quite pleased. She will be matched to someone in France. The Ministry has a couple of young men in mind and will let her choose."

"It's more than she deserves," Snape said as he looked back at Hermione and saw she was helping Ginny secure her tiara with some pins Hermione pulled from her hair.

"I agree," Harry added, "it's a shame that she was willing to throw her future away, just to extract revenge." Snape looked into the younger man's eyes and nodded.

"Thanks, again, Potter. I owe you my life."

Harry patted him on the back, like they were old comrades, "we'll call it even, Professor, Merlin knows I certainly owed you, after what you did for me." He stared at Potter as the young man moved away and started piling a plate for Ginny. Shaking his head, he also took a plate and began piling small sandwiches and little desserts for Hermione. When they returned to the small group, Hermione quickly took the plate from him.

"Thanks...I'm starving." She tucked into the sandwiches as she felt her husband's surprised gaze upon her. "What?" she mumbled after she swallowed.

"Why are you starving? Haven't you eaten anything?" He asked, trying to keep from using his Professor voice.

"No, I was waiting for you," she said looking up at him sweetly and holding out the plate indicating that he should take a sandwich. He took the proffered sandwich and fixed her with a small scowl.

"Woman, what did I tell you about starving my babies?" he whispered and was dismayed to hear the small group break out in laughter around them.

His wife beamed up at him and replied, "Severus, sweetheart, our babies are not going to starve just because I wanted to wait for you."

Snape couldn't hide the smile that he reserved only for his wife as he tucked into his sandwich and ignored the grins aimed in his direction. She just called him Sweetheart, let them all eat their hearts out...she was his.

Harry saw McGonagall sitting alone at a large table in the corner and suggested they all join her. McGonagall beamed up at them as they approached the table. Snape gently lowered Hermione into a chair, taking the one next to her. Once they were all seated, Snape listened quietly as her friends discussed their time at Hogwarts and how surreal it seemed to be back here. He excused himself, along with Harry, to procure another plate of food and returned to hear their laughter over something Ron had told them regarding a new product they had at the joke shop. Ron had started Auror training with Harry, but having decided it was not for him, resigned and had begun working with George at the joke shop.

"How is George holding up?" Ginny asked softly, causing all the laughter around the table to cease.

"He's doing okay, Gin. He was thinking about closing the shop, but changed his mind after he had a dream about Fred. He said Fred came to him in a dream and gave him a swift kick in the seat of his pants." Hermione could see Ginny's bottom lip tremble and reached across Severus to squeeze her hand.

"He still has the occasional sad day, but he says he has to live his life to the fullest or it would bring dishonor to Fred. He says Fred is still with him, in spirit, and he knows he is on the other side, giving them a run for their money."

Ginny laughed and Hermione released her hand, and placed it on her husband's thigh.

Snape moaned inwardly at the feeling of her hand on his thigh and wondered how much longer they would have to stay, before he could whisk his wife back to their quarters and shag her senseless. Her dress was causing him to think about those pirate romance novels and how the pirates seduced their wenches. He felt his face begin to redden at the naughty thoughts flitting across his mind and had to force them away before he became as randy as a schoolboy. Shit, even at six-months pregnant, his wife was smoking hot. He ran his hand along the inside of his collar and noticed the grin Potter was throwing his way. If he didn't know better, he'd think Potter had grasped the concept of Legilimency and was seeing his thoughts. He summoned two glasses of pumpkin juice and slid one towards his wife as he drank the other and attempted to clear his mind. Hermione sipped her juice as she smiled at him gratefully.

He saw Hermione yawn out of the corner of his eye and remarked that he would do one more sweep of the grounds before coming back to escort her back to their chambers. Hermione leaned towards him, and kissed him on the cheek before whispering for him to hurry back. He saw the smoldering look in her eyes and had to fight the urge to sod it all and take her back to their rooms immediately.

During his rounds, he deducted house points from two snogging couples, causing them to break apart and run back inside the castle. Feeling secure that he had done his duty, he hurried in and claimed his beautiful wife. He gripped her gently under her forearms and helped her stand to her feet. She rubbed her huge belly and bid everyone goodnight, as she took his arm to depart. His gaze landed on Harry. The young man was gaping in amazement at Ginny, who was currently on her third plate of food and didn't appear to be slowing down anytime soon. Snape smirked as he turned away. _Welcome to the club, Potter_ , he thought as he slowly guided Hermione out of the Great Hall.

As soon as they entered their quarters, Snape warded the door. He had plans for his wife tonight and didn't want to be disturbed. He stepped behind her and gripped her hips gently as he leaned down to nip at her exposed shoulders. She moaned and tilted her head as he slid his lips from her shoulder to her warm neck. Hermione clutched her stomach and hissed for her babies to behave. Snape placed his hands over the spot she was clutching and began rubbing small circles on her protruding stomach.

"Do you have any idea what that dress of yours did to me tonight? It took all my control not to ravage you in one of the alcoves." He breathed against her neck as he continued placing small kisses on her neck and bare shoulders. She kicked her shoes off and leaned back against him, enjoying the attention he was paying to her neck and shoulders.

"Unzip me, love." She whispered as his hands slid up from her stomach to cup her large breasts.

"I'm going to do more than unzip you, Mrs. Snape," Severus purred as he took her hand and guided her into their bedroom.

Hermione shuddered in anticipation as her husband reached into the bedside table and withdrew the bottle of her favorite lotion. He unzipped her dress and hissed in pleasure as it dropped and pooled around her feet.

Hermione removed her strapless bra and slid her panties off before climbing onto the bed and finding a comfortable position on her side. Snape hurriedly shed his pirate costume and cast a warming charm on the bottle before climbing onto the bed. He balanced on his knees as he began gently rubbing the lotion into her skin.

He finished massaging her back and was working on her stomach when she rolled over and lay on her back. He watched her as she propped pillows behind her back and shoulders before summoning him to move closer. Crawling closer to her, he was surprised when she reached out and began stroking his hardened cock. His erection was painfully hard due to his ministrations over her delicious body.

"Straddle my shoulders," she whispered her voice hoarse with desire. "I want to taste you, Severus. You looked good enough to eat tonight...let me prove it."

"Hermione, you don't have to," Snape whispered, even as he threw his leg over her shoulder and hovered above her. His eager cock bounced against her chin. She opened her mouth and captured the head of his cock between her lips and began sucking hungrily. Snape cried out in pleasure as he reached over her and held onto the headboard with both hands. The bottle of lotion was long forgotten as he clung to the headboard and moaned. Hermione wrapped her hand around his cock and began stroking it as she continued alternating between licking and sucking on the head of his engorged member. She reached out with her other hand and grasped his hip, indicating that she wanted him to pump his hips towards her. Snape hissed as he began pumping his hips and driving his cock deeper and deeper into her warm, welcoming mouth. Even with her hand wrapped around the base, he felt his cock hitting the back of her throat. She repositioned her head slightly and he gasped as it felt as if she were swallowing him down her throat. Damn, she was good. It felt so good and he was close...

"Oh fuck, I'm going to come, Hermione," he whispered hoarsely as she took him down her throat again.

She pulled his cock out with an audible pop and whispered, "come down my throat, Severus, I want to swallow your cum."

Snape's vision began to cloud as she took him back into her mouth and began milking him. He closed his eyes so hard he saw stars as he cried out and emptied himself at the back of her throat, feeling her throat constricting as she swallowed his seed. She continued sucking on him until he began to soften.

"Oh gods, that was incredible Hermione. Don't you have a gag reflex, girl?" He gasped. She giggled and reached around to slap him on his bare ass as he moved off of her with trembling legs. He lay down next to her and fought to regain his composure.

"I need you hard again, Severus. I'm aching between my legs and I will need your help with that, Sir." Hermione said as she licked her lips seductively at him.

"I've got your, 'Sir,' right here sweetheart," he whispered as he moved to hover over her and kiss her on her swollen lips. "I'm going to need a little help getting hard again. Just lay still and let me show you how skilled I am." She sighed in pleasure as he began kissing his way down over her swollen belly. He ignored the small foot that ran across her stomach as he continued down towards his goal. He moaned when his lips reached the small patch of curls between her legs and felt her wetness. "Damn, you are so wet for me, my little wench. I'm going to lick you dry." He attacked her clit with fervor and basked in the sounds of her gasps and moans and he brought her to her first orgasm of the night. She spread her legs further apart as he slid his fingers inside her and began working her towards her second orgasm. Hermione shrieked in pleasure and her legs shook uncontrollably as she came again. His erection pressed into the bed as he continued lapping at her juices-he knew he could never lick her dry. Snape positioned himself above her and grasped his painfully hard cock and guided the head inside her waiting heat. He placed his other hand next to her to support his weight and slammed himself inside her with one thrust. She cried out in pleasure and begged for more. He gasped for air as he continued to pummel in and out of her. Being careful not to put his weight on her, he continued to thrust himself in and out of her as fast and hard as he could. He felt his balls tighten and knew he was going to come soon. He attempted to hold off a little longer prolonging her pleasure and almost succeeded when she cried out.

"Oh shit, Severus, you feel so damn good. Come in me baby, come really hard."

Snape roared his pleasure as he slammed himself inside her to the hilt and emptied his seed deep inside her.

"Fuck, woman, are you trying to kill me?" He barked when he could catch his breath. She laughed and held her hands out to him. He climbed up next to her and laid his head on her shoulder as she stroked his hair off of his sweaty forehead. He brushed the hair away from her face, and kissed her on the lips. She slowly turned over so she was facing away from him. He could see how exhausted she was as he brushed her hair off of her shoulder and reached for his wand to clean them of the evidence of their lovemaking. After summoning the blankets, he wrapped his arms around her and pressed his chest against her back. He chuckled when he heard her gentle snore. His fingers drew circles on her stomach absentmindedly after he extinguished the lights and was rewarded with a small movement under his hand. Hermione moaned in her sleep. His babies would move restlessly if he continued rubbing her stomach, but she needed her sleep, so he stilled his hand and snuggled closer to her. He drifted off to sleep thinking how blessed he was to have this wonderful woman in his life.


	12. Chapter 12

_I apologize for taking so long to upload the next chapter. There are only a couple more chapters to go. Thanks for taking this journey with me. Disclaimer: i do not own Harry Potter, nor do I make any money off this._

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November passed in a blur of activity and Hermione was becoming restless. It was now two weeks before Christmas and she was feeling fat and frumpy. Her stomach had seemed to double in size and she hated that she waddled when she walked. If her husband hadn't insisted on rubbing lotion on her body every night, she'd probably have horrible stretch marks.

Snape was sitting on the sofa early Saturday morning when she exited the bedroom wearing a much too short cotton nightgown. Snape felt his erection press against the inside of his trousers as he looked her up and down. She yawned and stretched her hands over her head before catching the hungry look in her husband's eyes. She thanked her lucky stars that sex was no longer limited to Monday nights. She was so randy some days that she thought she would explode if he didn't get naked fast enough. She walked towards him and noticed the catalog he was holding in his lap.

"What are you looking at, love?" she asked sweetly as she came close enough to see it was her catalog of pregnancy products. Snape reluctantly pulled his gaze off the edge of the gown that had ridden up when she stretched and glanced down at the catalog.

"Oh this, I saw an advertisement for a pregnancy girdle and thought I could do a charm that would be just as good. I ran it by Flitwick and he thinks it will work nicely."

"You think I need a girdle?" Hermione wailed as her eyes began to tear. Snape realized his mistake right away and leapt to his feet and pulled her into his arms.

"It's not really a girdle, per say, it's a way to help support your stomach, so it won't feel as heavy as you support both babies." He kissed her on her forehead. "Do you want to try it?" She nodded and he stepped back from her. "You will need to take off your nightgown and your panties."

She grabbed the hem of her gown and pulled it up over her head and let it drop to the floor. Snape groaned when he saw that she was completely naked. She snapped her fingers a few inches from his face, and he snapped out of his daze.

"Right...just stand perfectly still."

"Wait, this won't hurt the babies, right? I don't want them to feel squished."

He looked at her with raised eyebrows, "would I do anything to risk my babies, Mrs. Snape?" He chided.

She smiled and held her arms out in complete trust. Snape nodded and pointed his wand at her stomach as he whispered the words he had worked out with Flitwick. Hermione instantly smiled and reached down to rub her large, round stomach.

"Oh, sweet Merlin, I feel so light, and my back doesn't hurt anymore."

Snape frowned. He hadn't realized all the extra weight had put an added strain on her back, as well. Hermione approached him slowly and put her hands against his chest, giving him a small kiss on his lips before pushing him back down on the couch. He was suddenly reminded of their wedding night.

"Unbuckle your pants and pull them down," she demanded.

Snape hurriedly undid his belt and cursed as he struggled with his zipper. It felt like déjà vu all over again. He was finally able to slide his pants and shorts down past his knees and moaned in anticipation as she straddled his lap and waited for him to place his hardness at her opening. He placed his hands on her hips and moaned as her wet pussy slid down over his cock. She began to ride him like she did on their honeymoon and Snape was lost to the pleasure. He laid his head back on the couch and fought to keep his hands on the sofa so he wouldn't touch her.

She laughed and whispered, "You can touch me, Severus." He took a breast in each hand and gently kneaded them as he licked one protruding nipple and then the other. Hermione moaned as she rode him towards orgasm. Snape gasped in disappointment when she climbed off him, but he soon growled in pleasure when she moved to position herself on her hands and knees on the sofa next to him. Snape quickly positioned himself behind her and entered her again with one trust.

"You like me fucking you from behind don't you, my hot little witch." He purred as he continued to pound into her.

"Yes, oh gods yes, Severus. I love it when you fuck me like this. It's been so long." She gasped when he slapped her on her right ass cheek and then proceeded to slap the other one. He could feel her wetness running down his leg and knew this was really turning her on. Reaching around her, he began stimulating her clit with his fingers and was rewarded with her first orgasm. She cried out as her body clamped down around him and Snape had to struggle to stay inside her as her convulsing walls tried to push him out. He began riding her harder and felt his balls tightening.

"Hermione, I can't hold on much longer, baby, please..."

"Yes, Severus, come in me my beautiful, sexy man."

Snape cried out as her words seemed to flow straight to his tightening balls. He came hard, crying out her name as he emptied himself inside her. She held him up as he collapsed onto her back. He rolled off quickly and dropped to the floor to keep from crushing her. His wife's delightful laugh reached him and pulled a smile to his lips. He lay on the floor and looked up at her as she lay down on the couch and gazed down at him with loving eyes. He kept his eyes glued to hers as he raised his hips and pulled his pants back up to fasten them.

"What did I ever do to deserve you?" He asked softly as he lay on the floor and reached up to run the back of his hand against her soft cheek.

She kissed his hand and replied, "I'm the lucky one."

His voice took on a hard edge when he confessed, "When I think about Miss Stewart and how close I came to losing you, I want to..."

"Severus, we agreed not to speak of that again. You couldn't help yourself. Amortentia is a very powerful potion. Although, I must admit something did occur to me and I wondered if it ever occurred to you."

"What?" He asked softly while gazing up at her loving face.

"You said that when you weren't with her and sometimes even when you were, you would feel guilty and think about me. That shouldn't have been possible. I know she said she should have upped the dose, but I think even that wouldn't have kept you from thinking about me." He nodded his head as she continued, "I did a lot of research on it. Apparently, somewhere deep inside your heart, you had already begun to love me. Once you experience true love, the fake kind will never be able to take complete hold of you." Tears were running down her face now and he sat up to wipe them away with his thumb.

"I think you may just be right, Hermione. I already appreciated everything you had done for me. You didn't press charges, you married me and you gave me the stable home life that I had always dreamed of. Your forgiveness and acceptance healed me...how could I not love you?" Hermione began crying in earnest prompting Snape to widen the sofa with wandless magic and climb onto it next to her as he gathered her into his arms. They stayed wrapped up in each other's arms for some time. It was only the sound of her stomach growling that drove them to get dressed and go down to the Great Hall for a late breakfast.

* * *

Christmas day was spent at the castle exchanging small presents. Snape gave her a necklace engraved with their babies' first names, Sam and John. They had decided to name the boys Samuel and Jonathon. Hermione ran her finger over the silver heart that had their boy's shortened names on it and smiled at her husband, who smiled back at her in return. She loved the way he smiled at her when no one was looking. His smiles brightened his features and made him appear years younger.

Hermione gave him a new leather-bound journal to record any new charms or potions he developed. They also gave each other books that they knew each of them had coveted. They returned to bed after a leisurely lunch and made love, taking time to pleasure each other.

The next morning, McGonagall connected the Floo to Hermione's parents home so they could spend the next two days with them. Snape had gone with Hermione to visit her parents a few times after they were married; however, he always felt a little uncomfortable around her father. He knew the man held no ill will towards him but he wasn't sure he could be so forgiving if someone had done to his daughter what he had done to Hermione. Of course, he knew he owed his happiness to the man who had insisted that he be forced to marry Hermione instead of being imprisoned. The Grangers were always welcoming to him and he watched them fuss over their daughter, with an amused smile. He was glad Hermione had come from such a happy home and not an abusive one like the one he had grown up in. He had adjusted his will to stipulate that Hermione's parents would get custody of their children if anything should happen to him and Hermione. He knew, in the event of his and Hermione's untimely death, his children would grow up knowing they were loved and wanted.

Later that night, after the dinner was consumed, followed by hot chocolate and cookies; he trailed Hermione up the stairs to her bedroom. He lay quietly in the darkness and listened for his wife's deep breathing. However, he soon realized that she was still awake. His breath caught in his throat as he felt her shift in bed and realized she had shed her knickers. She climbed on top of him and straddled his waist.

"Hermione, we're in your parent's house. I don't feel comfortable..."

She silenced him with a kiss. "Didn't you ever want to make out while your parents slept in the next room? Let's see how quiet we can be." She whispered as she reached between her legs and released his stiffening cock from the confines of his pajama bottoms.

"I can raise a silencing charm." He offered, but Hermione stilled his hand as he reached under the pillow for his wand.

"No, I don't want to use any magic. Let's see how quiet you can be." She whispered again.

Snape groaned softly as she slid herself down on his hard shaft. He whimpered when she began riding him faster. He kept glancing at the door expecting her father to burst in any moment and demand to know what he was doing to his little girl.

Hermione giggled softly at his nervousness and continued to pleasure him by lifting herself up and down on his stiff cock. He fought to control his urge to cry out when she began riding him harder. His girdle charm worked its magic as she rode him with abandon.

She clamped her hand over his mouth when he began to feel his balls tightening. He smirked under her hand as he reached out and began stimulating her clit with his thumb. This was her bright idea. He wanted to see if she could have a quiet orgasm. She looked down at him with lust hazed eyes as her body began to shake. She threw her head back and elicited a soft moan as her pussy clamped down on him. He was amazed at her willpower until he noticed the tears running down her face.

He snatched his wand and erected a silencing charm before gently rolling her onto her side. He withdrew his cock and grabbed her hips to help her up on her hands and knees. He positioned himself behind her and entered her again with one thrust. Holding onto her hips, he continued thrusting his hips forward while pulling her back to meet each thrust. Her soft moans became wild shrieks as he reached around her and stroked her clit through two orgasms.

When she cried out that she couldn't take anymore, he let go and cried out her name as he emptied himself deep inside her. He withdrew from her and assisted her in getting comfortable on her side before using his wand to clean them. She laughed softly as she thanked him for realizing that she was about to lose control.

He chuckled as he removed the silencing charm and moved to curl up behind her. She was asleep before he managed to cover them both. He grinned like a schoolboy when he thought he had just shagged his wife rotten without alerting the couple who were sleeping in the very next room. Of course he had fantasized about shagging a woman in his bedroom while growing up...every teenage boy did. He would have to list this experience as another fantasy he had experienced with her. As he fell asleep he wondered how open she would be to making love on a blanket next to Hogwarts Lake under a disillusionment charm.

The next morning he was drinking coffee in the kitchen with her father when Hermione came in whispering something to her mother. Snape felt his face flush with embarrassment when he realized they were talking about what he and his wife had done last night. He had heard the words, "orgasm" and "silencing charm." Her mother turned and threw a small smile at him before leaning over to whisper something to Hermione that caused the younger woman to roar with laughter. Her father was looking at him with narrowed eyes.

Snape stared down into his coffee and wanted to melt into the floor, when her father commented, "ignore them son; if woman aren't gossiping about their sex lives, their gossiping about someone else's."

Hermione came up behind Snape and wrapped her arms around him as she leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. She took the seat next to him and proceeded to eat everything in sight. Snape looked over at her father and stifled a laugh when he saw his mouth hanging open. Obviously, her father had forgotten how hungry a pregnant woman gets.

They returned to Hogwarts later that day, after several hugs and shed tears from Hermione. Her parents assured her they would be prepared to Floo over as soon as they were alerted that the babies had been born. Snape blushed when Hermione's mother hugged him and kissed him on the cheek. Her dad gave him a quick hug and then patted him on the back while thanking him for taking such good care of his little girl and her bundles of joy. Snape nodded and assured him again that he would always take good care of his Hermione.

Snape insisted that Hermione lay down for a nap while he went over his lesson plans for the remaining year. She fussed and fretted but fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Snape placed a small kiss on her forehead as he covered her with blankets and made sure the fire was burning hot enough to warm up the room. He was passing by the nursery when something caught his eye. He stepped inside the small room and crossed over to the stuffed bunnies that were sitting on the changing table. One was light green and the other was a soft yellow. He smiled as he ran his hand over the soft fur of the bunnies and saw a gift tag that showed they were from McGonagall. A small smile graced his lips as he turned and departed the small room.

It wasn't until later that afternoon that Snape realized his babies would be making their grand entrance in less than two months. He sipped his coffee absentmindedly as he remembered the impromptu lessons his mother-in-law had given him before they departed. She had placed a baby doll in his arms and instructed him on the proper way to hold an infant and support its head. He had held Draco a few times, when he was an infant, however, that had been so long ago. He had felt silly as he stood in Mrs. Granger's sitting room and rocked the baby doll in his arms, but she had insisted that it was important for him to learn how to hold and comfort an infant. He was glad now that he had made the effort. Since there would be two babies, he would be expected to hold one as his wife tended to the needs of the other.

 _What if I'm not a good father? What if I become like my father and my children hate me?_ Snape ran his hand down his face and groaned. He didn't want to let Hermione down. What if his children cried every time they looked at him? He could scare first years with a well-placed sneer. What if his children were afraid of him? Snape shook his head to clear his thoughts. He knew he loved Hermione and the babies were an extension of her, so he felt it would be easy to love them, as well. As for them fearing him, he'd just have to work harder to be a good father and assure them that he would never hurt them, not like his father had hurt him. Snape thought about all the times his father had used his fist or open hand to show his son how much he despised him. His father took every opportunity afforded to him to remind Severus that he was a useless excuse for a son and that he wished he'd never been born. Snape lost count of how many times he watched helplessly as his father beat his mother. He would lie awake at night and cry alone in his room. Going to Hogwarts during the school year gave him a reprieve from his father; however, he spent the entire time worrying about his mother. She refused to leave her husband, no matter how much her son pleaded with her. His worst fear was that his mother would die by his father's hand.

Unfortunately, his worst fears were realized when he was notified during the last week of his seventh year that his mother's body had been discovered by a neighbor, and his father had been arrested for her murder.

Lucius had tried to comfort him by saying that the dark lord took care of his followers and would make sure his muggle father paid for his crime. Snape had been on his way to the prison to confront his father, when he was pulled into the warden's office and informed that his father had been killed in a riot that erupted during the night. His father had been beaten to death. Snape felt a sense of poetic justice when he thought of how the dark lord had extracted revenge on his behalf.

At first, Snape had felt gratitude and a sense of undying loyalty towards Voldemort. However, the more he spent in the presence of the evil man, the more he realized that Voldemort had a lot in common with his father. He preyed on the weak and tortured anyone who got in the way of his rise to power. When Voldemort went back on his word and killed Lily, Snape knew he had only traded one mad man for another. It was from that moment on, that he set a course towards ending the reign of the dark lord. He only wished he had known better than to trust Voldemort.

Snape shook his head and cleared his thoughts. No, he would be a much better father and make sure his boys knew they were loved and wanted. He tidied up his desk and decided to return to his chambers and share his fears with Hermione.

Hermione sat next to him on the sofa and held onto his hand, tightly, as he told her about his past and how his father had abused him. He stared at their joined hands as he finished his story and listened to her weeping softly. He hadn't meant to upset her, but he wanted her to know what his childhood had been like.

"I don't want your pity, Hermione. I only told you so you would understand..."

"Oh Severus, it just breaks my heart that anyone could be so cruel to a child." Hermione whispered as she placed her hands on either side of his face and turned his head so that he was staring into her tear-filled eyes. "You are an amazing person. You didn't deserve to be hurt like that. I'm sorry that your mother wasn't stronger. I'm sorry that I wasn't there to protect you and keep you safe."

Snape fought to hold back the tears as his lovely wife wept over the fact that she had been unable to save him from the pain he had endured. He stood to his feet and began pacing in front of her.

"Hermione, sweetheart, you weren't even born yet. Besides, that was in the past. What I'm worried about most is that I will become my father. What if I..."

"Severus Snape," Hermione huffed as she grabbed his hand and pulled him towards her, as she remained seated on the sofa. He dropped to his knees between her open legs and placed his hands on her knees as he closed his eyes and waited to hear her admonish him for not telling her sooner what a monster he might become.

"You are a wonderful, caring man." Hermione placed her fingers under his chin and lifted his head so he was looking her in the eyes. "You have proven time and again that you are not your father. You were willing to give you life to save Lily's son. I can only imagine what you would be willing to do for a son of your own."

Snape felt a huge burden lift off his shoulders as his wife continued reminding him of all the times he had helped not only Harry, but her and the other students. He realized that he was very different from his father. With a gasp of relief, he leaned forward and wrapped his arms around his wife's waist as he laid his head against her bosom and cried the tears he had tried so hard to reign in.

Hermione stroked his hair and whispered words of love and encouragement as she allowed him to regain his composure. He was slightly embarrassed as he pulled away, but had to smile when she thanked him for opening up to her and trusting her with his secrets.

He kissed his wife gently and moaned when she deepened the kiss. He felt her nails scratch gently against his scalp as she devoured his lips. He was feverish with desire as he realized her hands had moved to his chest. She had unbuttoned his shirt, pushing it off his shoulders. Grabbing the hem of her shirt, he tugged it over her head before tossing it away and feasting on her neck. She reached behind her and unclasped her bra as he knelt between her open legs and gently kneaded her breasts in his large hands, discarding the bra and taking one of her pert nipples into his mouth and sucking gently on it. He repeated the gentle sucking motion on her other nipple and was rewarded with a throaty demand that he take her immediately.

He grabbed the waistband of her pants, and she leaned back lifting her hips slightly to allow him the opportunity to pull both her pants and knickers down. He slipped off her shoes, then slid her pants off her legs and tossed them aside. She cried out in ecstasy when he pulled her hips towards the edge of the sofa and buried his face between her legs. Her legs were draped over his shoulders and shook each time he brought her close to orgasm only to back off slightly. She growled in frustration, prompting him to bring her to a full mind-blowing orgasm. He chuckled against her thigh as her legs continued quaking from her spasms.

He quickly stood to undo his belt buckle and started slightly when she reached out for his hips and yanked him towards her, so his waist was even with her face. She pulled his pants down towards his knees and withdrew his hardness stroking it twice before capturing it in her mouth. Snape whimpered in pleasure as she pulled him to the back of her throat and began bobbing her mouth back and forth on his stiff cock. Unable to control himself, he fisted his hands in her mass of curls and held her head still as he fucked her mouth. He could feel his cock hitting the back of her throat and trembled every time she attempted to swallow him whole. He felt his balls tighten and his body began to shake from the stress of holding back his need to come.

"Oh, gods, Hermione, baby, I can't hold it much longer, please..."

Hermione pulled her mouth off of his stiff member with an audible pop and lay back on the couch. Snape dropped to his knees and grabbed her hips pulling her to the edge of the sofa again. He rubbed his cock up and down her slit a few times, eliciting moans of pleasure from his beautiful wife, before thrusting himself inside her. He hooked her knees up over his shoulders and wrapped his arms around her thighs to hold her in place as he began to vigorously thrust in and out of his wife.

Hermione flung her arms out and gripped the sofa cushions as she encouraged him to ride her harder between shrieks of pleasure. Snape loved how vocal his wife was during lovemaking and fought against the overwhelming desire to let go and come inside her. He wanted to prolong her pleasure as long as possible. This beautiful creature had not only listened to his deepest fears, but she had helped to alleviate them. Never in his life had he ever had someone who emotionally supported him the way she did. He had always been there for Lily, but looking back now, he saw how many times she had abandoned him during his time of need.

Hermione cried out and Snape felt a gush of fluids bathe his cock as her body convulsed around his cock. He came with a shout as he pumped his seed inside her.

"Oh shit, please tell me that wasn't your water breaking," Snape panted as he fought to regain his composure and remember what they were supposed to do if she went into labor, before her scheduled due date.

"Severus, that wasn't my water breaking—you just made me come very hard, that's all," Hermione panted softly as she attempted to pull herself back up to a sitting position. She rolled her eyes when she saw his pleased smirk.

"I seem to be getting very good at that, Mrs. Snape," his silky voice replied.

"You've always been good at that, Mr. Snape, from the first time you made love to me. I couldn't believe I had an orgasm right on the Malfoy's damn floor."

Snape looked down quickly and Hermione could see the color rising to his cheeks. "I had no right to..."

"Severus, sweetheart, we've talked about this. We were both forced to do something that we didn't want to do, but it turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to us. Look at me," she added as she brushed the hair back from his face so she could see his dark, smoldering eyes. "I love you, Severus Snape...never doubt that. I thank the heavens every day that I have you in my life. You saved me that night and your love has given me hope for a long, wonderful future with you."

Snape leaned forward and placed a small kiss on her swollen lips. "In all actuality, my love, you saved me. I plan to spend the rest of my life making sure you never regret your decision to give me a chance...give us a chance."

Hermione smiled and kissed the tip of his nose. "Well, it looks like we will both be busy for the next hundred or so years."

Snape beamed a lovely smile at her and Hermione felt her heart constrict with the joy one of his rare, unguarded smiles gave her. She continued stroking his face until a huge yawn escaped her, earning her a frown.

"You must be exhausted, Hermione. It's late." He waved his wand and cleaned the evidence of their lovemaking before he refastened his pants and wrapped his arms around her.

"You can't carry me, Severus, I'm too heavy," Hermione warned, earning her a chuckle from her loving husband.

He used a wandless spell to levitate her as he scooped her up into his arms and stood to his feet. "You are married to a wizard, Mrs. Snape. Did you forget that?"

Hermione giggled and snuggled against his chest as he carried her into the bedroom and laid her naked body upon their bed. She sat up slowly and raised her arms so he could slide a soft cotton nightgown over her. He helped her find a comfortable position on her side before darkening the room and sliding into bed behind her. Hermione sighed and fell asleep as she felt his fingers making small circle patterns on her protruding stomach.


	13. Chapter 13

_Sorry for taking so long to post the next chapter. I used my imagination to picture what surgery at St. Mungo's would look like. Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor do I make any money off this._

* * *

Hermione placed her book down onto the bed and gave a large, exaggerated sigh. Her eyes met the reflection of his eyes, in the mirror, as he adjusted his caveat. Snape grimaced before turning to face her.

"Hermione," he approached the bed slowly as if he were ready to deliver an important speech. "I know you hate being cooped up here. However, Madam Pomfrey would not have assigned you to strict bed rest unless absolutely necessary. It's already the first week in January. We only have seven more weeks before you come to full term. I agree with Poppy that we must do everything we can to ensure the babies don't come too early."

Hermione gave him her best smile and lifted her chin to accept his chaste kiss upon her lips. He gave her chaste kisses in the morning, now; for fear that he would start something he wouldn't be able to finish.

"I know, Severus, but it doesn't mean I have to like it. I get so bored here, I don't get any sex and my back hurts."

"No buts, Hermione. I don't like the 'no sex' part any more than you do." His scowl could have traumatized first years. "However, we owe it to our babies to make sure they have a fighting chance. Even though you could ace your NEWTs today, think of your bed rest as extra time to study. Of course, I expect you to get lots of rest as well. You were pushing yourself too hard to prepare for your NEWTS. If Poppy hadn't been able to halt your premature labor, when she did, we may have lost both babies." His voice had dropped to a near whisper, proving the emotion in his words. Tears sprung to her eyes as she saw the pain reflected on his face. They had been through so much and her thoughtless actions had nearly caused her to go into premature labor, shortly after Christmas. She had been forcing herself to study for long hours and had even sacrificed sleep in order to study what her husband felt she must know by heart already.

"I'm sorry, Severus. I promise, I will listen to Madam Pomfrey and get plenty of rest. Ginny is stopping by later today to bring me next week's assignments. I promise not to go nuts with my class work and stay as calm and relaxed as I can, okay?"

Hermione smiled as he leaned over and placed a soft kiss on her lips. She reached up and threaded her fingers through his hair as she deepened the kiss. Her body tingled as she heard her husband moan in longing. He reached up and gently removed her fingers from his hair before pulling back slightly to place his forehead against hers.

"You are going to be the death of me, woman," he growled. Hermione's eyes followed him as he stood and adjusted his robes. She let out a soft moan when she caught a glimpse of his tented trousers, before he managed to pull his robes around to cover it.

Snape gasped when she reached out and snatched his robes, pulling him closer to her.

"Poppy only said we couldn't have intercourse, she didn't say anything about..." she quickly undid his belt and managed to free his stiff erection as he watched her in fascination, torn between stopping her and letting her continue.

"Straddle my shoulders, Severus, just like you did the night of the Halloween party."

Snape hesitated for only a moment before carefully climbing into position, still dressed in his teaching attire.

"I use to fantasize about hiding under your desk during class and giving you a blow-job as you sat at your desk. I imagined how difficult it would be for you to look out at your students and keep a straight face as I sucked on your cock and massaged your balls."

"You did?" Snape whispered as he trembled from the feel of his wife taking his cock into her hot, wet mouth. He moaned and grabbed the back of the headboard to anchor himself to reality as he felt his cock sliding down her throat. "I don't think I would have, oh fuck, been able to have, uhm..."

Hermione reached under and cupped his balls as she continued devouring him.

"Oh shit, oh gods, Hermione. Don't stop, oh shit that feels so good, so fucking good," Snape whimpered as she began stroking his cock with one hand, sucked on him and gripped his balls with her other hand.

Hermione pulled her mouth off of him with an audible pop and whispered, "You taste so good, Severus. I could suck on you all day and never get my fill of your delicious cock."

Snape's balls tightened at her declaration and the sensation of her taking him to the back of her throat again as she sucked greedily on him. He tried to hold off as long as he could, however, his body began to tremble and he knew he was fighting a losing battle.

"I wouldn't last all day, Hermione. Your mouth feels so damn good. I, I...oh shit, Hermione, I'm coming, please, please, I'm..." He threw his head back and roared in pleasure as she took him down her throat and swallowed his seed as he emptied everything he had. His body continued trembling even as his member softened and she released him from her mouth.

"Sweetheart, are you okay?" Hermione asked, slightly alarmed, as she looked up into his face and felt his body continue to tremble. His eyes were clinched tight as if he were in pain.

"I'm fine, baby. I just need a minute—damn that was so good," he whispered.

Hermione smiled and licked her lips, earning a small glare from her husband. He was still straddling her shoulders as he gently chastised her.

"I feel like my heart stops and I have trouble catching my breath when you make me come that hard. I was right woman...you will be the death of me, one day."

Hermione gave an exaggerated pout, "It's not my fault you taste so damn good."

Snape growled and swung his leg over her as he moved down so that he was hovering over her, careful to avoid her stomach. She placed her hands on each side of his face and pulled him down to kiss her. Their kiss deepened and Snape came to his senses when he realized he was massaging her breasts, eliciting moans from his aroused wife. He pulled away slightly and pressed his forehead against hers again.

"Severus, we can..."

"Hermione, we can't. Poppy said..."

"I know, I know, Severus. It's okay. I was just going to say that we can get fully acquainted again after the babies are born. I can hold out a little longer."

Snape placed a kiss on her forehead and felt guilty for feeling sexually satisfied. It had been almost a week since they had made love. He had taken matters into his own hand a few times since then, however, nothing compared to having his wife drain him dry with her delectable mouth.

"Hermione maybe I can return the favor and at least bring you to orgasm."

Hermione gently pushed him back and smiled.

"No Severus, you know that was never enough for me. Before long I would be begging you to shove your cock inside me and we'd be doing exactly what Madam Pomfrey told us not to do."

Snape smirked before placing a small kiss on her forehead. He stood up next to the bed and refastened his trousers as his wife licked her lips again.

"Stop that," he warned softly, "or I'll never get out of here. I do have dunderheads to teach today."

Hermione giggled as she playfully swatted at him. "Go then. Go force knowledge into those little brains and then come back home to me."

Snape gave her another chaste kiss on the lips before departing their chambers.

Another week passed as Hermione obeyed Madam Pomfrey's orders to stay bedridden. She managed to convince her husband to let her take care of his needs three more times before the week was out. He always left their chambers feeling guilty for not being able to abate her needs; however, she argued that he would have plenty of time to make it up to her after the babies arrived.

On Monday, Hermione was still asleep when Snape prepared to depart their quarters. He placed a soft kiss on her forehead and stole quietly out of the room.

Later that afternoon, Ginny stepped into the Snape's quarters and placed her school bag on the sofa. She rubbed her round belly and was rewarded with a small kick.

"Hermione, I brought this week's assignments for you. I thought we could work on them together." Ginny called out as she opened her bag and withdrew a few of their textbooks. She paused a moment when she didn't hear Hermione reply. She set the textbooks down, walked quietly towards the bedroom door and peeked in, thinking her best friend must still be asleep. She quickly crossed the room and placed her hand on Hermione's shoulder as her friend sat on the edge of the bed, groaning in pain.

"Mione, what's wrong? Are you feeling contractions?"

"No, Gin, they're sharp pains," Hermione gasped, "I've never felt anything like this before."

"Gussie!" Ginny shouted as she gently pushed Hermione back down on the bed and pulled her legs up so she was lying on her side.

"Madam Potter called for Gussie?" the small elf asked as soon as she popped into the room.

"Go get Madam Pomfrey and bring her here right away," Ginny ordered as she ran her wand over Hermione to run a quick dialysis. Gussie squeaked and popped out of sight, returning almost immediately, clutching Madam Pomfrey's hand.

"How far apart are the contractions?" Pomfrey asked as she let go of the elf's hand and stood next to Ginny.

"It's not that, exactly. Something's wrong, I just can't tell what..."

Hermione screamed in pain. Pomfrey quickly ran her wand over her and gasped. She transfigured the blanket under Hermione into a gurney and floated her patient towards the elf.

"You there, elf, take her to St Mungo's immediately. Ginny you go with them. Tell them one of the Placenta's has become detached, and the babies will need to be delivered immediately."

"Severus," Hermione cried weakly before she lost consciousness.

Ginny gasped in alarm, however, she took one of Gussie's hands as the elf clutched Hermione's arm with the other and they popped out of sight. Madam Pomfrey paused to send a Patronus to the Headmistress, before racing towards the Potion Master's classroom.

Snape was standing at the front of the classroom lecturing the students on the process for brewing a shrinking potion, when McGonagall came bursting through the door. Her hair was disheveled and she clutched her stomach as she gasped for air. Snape felt the air leave his lungs and felt as if he had been punched in the stomach...something had happened to Hermione.

"Turn to page 284," Snape barked as he swept to the back of the classroom, took McGonagall by the arm and pulled her out into the corridor.

"Get to St. Mungos, now," McGonagall wheezed.

"What happened? Is Hermione..."

"Now, damn it!" McGonagall screeched as she flung open his door and breathlessly ordered his class to take their seats. Many of them had come to the door in hopes of finding out what was wrong. Snape barely heard McGonagall call on one of the students to read the first paragraph aloud as he turned and raced up the corridor. He rounded the corner at full speed and saw Madam Pomfrey racing towards him.

"Professor McGonagall lowered the wards," she cried out as she collided with him. He reached out and grabbed her arms to keep her from falling backwards. "Madam Potter is with her. I sent them to St. Mungo's the moment I realized..." She gripped his arms tightly as tears ran down her cheeks, "Severus, please hurry."

Fear squeezed his heart and he called on his years as a spy to calm his emotions as he nodded, stepped back from her and Disapparated.

He Apparated outside the hospital and ran into the dilapidated building that hid the hospital from muggle eyes. He had visited the Maternity Ward with Hermione previously, so he knew exactly where to go. When he reached the correct corridor, the whole ward was bustling with activity.

"Where's my wife!" Snape shouted as he grabbed the first healer he saw. The healer shook in fear and was unable to get command of his voice. Snape sneered at him and spun around when he heard his name being shouted.

"Snape!" Potter ran towards him and slid to a stop. "Ginny sent her Patronus and I came here immediately. I'm not family, so they would only tell me she's been taken into surgery." Harry turned and ran back up the way he had come with Snape hot on his heels.

They rounded the corner and raced into a large room Snape had never seen before. There were several healers bustling around and none of them seemed to notice the recent arrivals.

"This is him. He's the father," Harry called to the nearest healer, who cast a charm on Snape, outfitting him in hospital scrubs, a surgical mask over his face and latex gloves on his hands, before pushing him into a smaller room that was bustling with activity. His eyes immediately focused on his wife who was lying on an operating table. Her stomach was shielded from his view by a small partition. A healer skirted around the partition and approached him quickly.

"Professor Snape thanks for coming so quickly." The healer said softly as he placed his hand on Snape's back and led him to the other side of the room. "I'm Healer Smethwyck, and I will be delivering your babies today. Unfortunately, one of the baby's placentas has begun separating from the uterus wall, so we have no choice but to deliver them surgically today. Not only is this condition dangerous for the mother, if the child is not delivered, he will die."

"Please, save my wife." Snape blurted, feeling guilty for thinking of her first. "I mean save them both, please."

Smethwyck nodded and returned to his place behind the partition.

Snape crossed the room and leaned down to place a kiss on Hermione's forehead. Her eyes were glazed and he wasn't even sure she knew he was there, until she whimpered.

"I'm so sorry, Severus, I tried to carry them full-term...I'm so sorry." Her voice was slurred, as her eyes fluttered closed. Snape smoothed the hair off her forehead.

"No one is blaming you sweetheart. The nice Healer is going to deliver the babies for us and we will be taking them home earlier than expected." It took everything he had to sound calm and reassuring as fear gripped his heart.

"My parents," Hermione sighed, before her eyes fluttered closed and her expression softened in slumber. Snape kissed her forehead again and whispered that he would send word to her parents as soon as she and the babies were out of danger.

"She's out," the Medi-nurse announced. Smethwyck nodded and explained every step he was taking aloud. Snape was handed a baby blanket, by one of the assisting nurses, and instructed to hold it until told what to do with it.

"I've opened her belly and I'm in her uterus now. Nurse, I will hand you the first baby. Pass him immediately to Professor Snape so I can hand you the next one. We must get them out as quickly..."

The sound of an infant's cry pierced the silence of the room and Snape felt the smile spread across his face unhindered. He looked down at his unconscious wife and wished she had been awake for this. He would be sure to show her this memory in a pensive.

"You have a beautiful baby girl," the nurse announced as she placed the squirming infant in the outstretched blanket Snape was holding. "Wrap her tightly in the blanket and hold her against your chest." Snape wrapped the squirming infant as quickly as possible and stared down in shock.

"Girl? We're supposed to be having two boys," Snape informed her as he stared down at the crying infant in his arms.

"Nope...that one's a girl," the nurse called out as she returned to her place next the healer. "You can check for yourself, if you don't believe me."

'I'll take your word for it," Snape muttered with a sneer. He wasn't about to check his baby's sex as if she were a stray puppy. He looked down at the pink squirming bundle in his arms and felt as if his heart was going to explode in joy. She had soft black hair and a little button nose, just like her mother. Snape sighed in relief when he realized his daughter had not inherited his huge nose. He rocked her gently as his mother-in-law had taught him and was pleased to see that she was starting to calm down.

Another nurse stepped forward and held her hands out for the baby. Snape sneered at her and stepped away, until Smethwyck reminded him that he would need his arms free to hold the next baby. Snape looked back at the nurse and realized it was Ginny behind the mask, holding her arms out expectantly. He placed a small kiss on his daughter's forehead, before reluctantly handing the baby over to her. He heard Ginny coo over his loving gesture and narrowed his eyes at her. She was probably amazed that he could show such compassion to a child. He watched Ginny's retreating figure as she departed the room with his daughter and his arms suddenly felt empty. He was handed another blanket and looked down at Hermione again as he waited. He was anxious for his wife to awaken and hold their baby girl for the first time. He chuckled quietly when he thought of how surprised she was going to be when she learned they had a daughter.

"Healer!" the nurse gasped.

"I know, nurse, it's alright. Hand me a breather."

"What? What's wrong?" Snape hissed as fear gripped his heart and he clutched the empty blanket in his hands.

"Everything is fine, Snape, your son just needs a little oxygen, that's all," Smethwyck said calmly as he lifted the still infant into the nurses waiting arms and placed a small clear oval-shaped mask over the baby's face. Snape's blood ran cold when he noticed the tinge of blue on the baby's skin. He clutched the blanket absentmindedly, silently pleading that their boy would be okay.

Finally, Smethwyck took the mask off of his son and crossed the room to gently place him in his arms. Snape looked down at the still child and watched his chest rise and fall with each breath. A curt nod from the nurse reminded him to wrap the baby in the blanket. The baby squirmed and his bottom lip trembled. He let out a small, pitiful cry. Snape did not miss the look that passed between healer and nurse. The nurse bustled over, placed the mask back onto his son's face and practically snatched the baby out of his hands before turning and leaving the room with him. Snape made to follow, however, Smethwyck grabbed his arm.

"We will get them both cleaned up, so your wife can see them all fresh and polished. We're moving her to the recovery ward and you can sit with her until she regains consciousness."

"What's wrong with him, Smethwyck?" Snape asked quietly, fearing the answer.

Smethwyck removed his gloves and sighed. "He is smaller than his sister and it was his placenta that had begun to detach. Apparently, his oxygen supply was pretty low. He will be placed in our special-care ward and we will do everything we can to ensure he builds his strength back up."

Snape saw Hermione being levitated onto another bed and noticed her stomach had been closed and the cut was already fading.

"Go be with your wife, Snape. We will take good care of your children."

Snape nodded and stepped up next to Hermione's gurney to hold her limp hand as they escorted her to the recovery room.

Snape sat beside his sleeping wife and held his head in his hands as he wondered what was taking so long. It had already been over two hours since he had departed the delivery room with his wife. Surely someone would have come to him by now and told him how his son was fairing. He heard the door open quietly and stood up when Ginny slipped into the room.

"Well?" He hissed quietly, trying not to awaken his exhausted wife.

Ginny sighed and pulled the surgical mask off her face. "He's breathing on his own now, but he's not responding like he should. If only we had gotten her here sooner."

"I want to see him."

"Severus..."

"Now, Ginevra...I want to see him, now," Snape hissed through gritted teeth.

"Fine, follow me," Ginny huffed quietly and turned on her heel. Snape cast a glance at his slumbering wife and followed Ginny out of the room. They walked quietly around a few corners and a long corridor before she pushed open the door to a small room and stood aside so he could enter. She turned with a small sob and fled back down the corridor.

Snape's eye's quickly adjusted to the darkness, as a Medi-nurse stepped forward and performed a cleansing charm on him. He felt the same sensation he had before and looked down to see that he was outfitted in the same hospital garb as before. Snape nodded to the nurse and approached the small crib that held his infant son. He was almost identical to his sister, except his nose seemed a tad larger. Snape stared down at his son and felt his heart constrict at the sound of his son struggling to breathe. He swiped at the tears that ran down his cheeks with the back of his sleeve, as Smethwyck entered the room.

"I'm sorry, Professor, we've done everything we can," the healer whispered as he ran his wand over the incubator and checked the infant's vitals. "He should be getting stronger. At this rate, I fear he will not last the night."

"Them babies needs being together," a small voice demanded. Snape looked down to see his house elf, Gussie, tugging at the healer's pant leg. "He bees missing his sister," Gussie scolded the healer. The baby scrunched up his face in a silent cry before searching for his fist that was hovering next to his cheek. Snape turned on his heel and fled the room. His son was slowly fading away and there was nothing he could do about it.

He shed his hospital scrubs as he exited the hospital and darted down the empty alleyway, before erecting a silencing charm and dropped to his knees in despair. Sobs wracked his body as he cried in despair. He couldn't get the image of his son struggling to breathe out of his mind and ached when he thought of the possibility of having to tell his wife that their son had passed, before she had the chance to hold him. He sat back against the cold brick wall and cried until he felt as if he had no tears left. Finally, he sent a silent prayer heavenward as he berated himself for falling apart out here while his son lay dying alone. He resolved that he would hold his son until the moment came.

Snape climbed to his feet and smoothed his robes as he canceled his silencing charm and headed back inside the building. He entered the long corridor that led to his son's room and was surprised when a blur flew at him and wrapped itself around his legs. He stared down at Gussie, who was clinging to him and crying so hard her shoulders shook. Her hands were heavily bandaged as she clung to his legs. Snape's chest constricted in despair...his son must be gone.

"Gussie just bees taking baby to hers brother. Gussie meaning no harm. Nurse bees angry that Gussie bees taking the baby. Gussie ironed hers hands for being a bad elf."

Snape shook his head to clear his thoughts. "What are you talking about?" Snape asked the distraught elf.

"Snape!" The healer called out to him from the end of the corridor. "Get down here, man, you've got to see this!" Snape raced up the corridor with Gussie right behind him. His mind barely registered that everyone he passed was smiling broadly. Surely they wouldn't be smiling if... Snape entered the room behind the healer. The same Medi-nurse cast the charm on him; however, he barely noticed as his eyes were riveted to the small crib. What he saw nearly took his breath away. His newborn daughter was lying next to her brother with her arm wrapped around him possessively. His son was no longer deathly pale, but a rosy pink, and his breathing was no longer raspy. The healer smiled as he waved his wand over the babies and Snape was shocked to see the numbers hovering over both his children. His son was going to be okay.

"What happened? He was almost gone..." Snape whispered through the surgical mask covering his face.

"Apparently, your elf was right. Your son missed his sister."

Snape couldn't help the laugh that escaped him.

"So you thought putting them together might help him grow stronger—absolutely brilliant!"

Gussie began quietly weeping again as the healer sheepishly admitted, "Uh, actually, it was your elf's doing. She took your daughter from her crib and placed her in the crib next to her brother. You should have heard the Medi-nurse screaming when she thought an elf had kidnapped one of the babies."

Snape looked down at Gussie who was weeping into her bandaged hands. He couldn't believe his elf had been so bold. Of course, his elf had become attached to Hermione and would do anything to protect her children.

"It's all right, Gussie. I'm not angry with you." Snape said softly as the elf dried her tears on her bandages and looked up at him with large, hopeful eyes. Snape looked at her bandaged hands and shook his head. "What did Madam Snape tell you about punishing yourself, Gussie?"

Gussied put her hands behind her back and looked down at the floor. Snape smiled at her attempt to hide her bandaged hands. He lowered his surgical mask, before leaning down to place a small kiss on each of his babies' heads. He adjusted their blanket just as Ginny raced into the room.

"Is it true?" She said softly as she crossed over to stand beside him. "Hermione's awake and I didn't know what to tell her." To Snape's utter horror, she took one look at his infants and threw he arms around him as she burst out in tears. Snape wrapped his arms around her hesitantly. He held her gently, at a loss of what to do with this crying woman in his arms. Luckily, Potter was admitted into the room and Snape was able to extract her arms from around him and push her into her husband's waiting arms.

"Hermione," he exclaimed when he remembered what Ginny said as she entered the room. He turned on his heels and fled up the corridor, berating himself for not being there when his wife awoke from surgery. He pushed open the door to her room and mentally kicked himself when he saw the fear in her eyes.

"Severus," She whispered as the tears ran down her face. "They won't tell me anything. Please tell me the babies are..."

"They're both fine, my love," Snape said quietly as he removed the hospital garb, sat on the edge of her bed and wrapped his arms around her. "We were a little worried about Jonathon, until our lovely house elf decided to put Samantha in the bed with him. She is clinging to him like a life-line and he's going to be just fine."

Hermione nodded against his chest and wiped her tears with the tissue he pressed into her hand.

"What? Wait a minute, did you just say Samantha?" Hermione gasped as she pulled back slightly and looked up into his face.

Snape laughed at the shocked expression on his wife's face and pulled her back against his chest. "Yes, my dear wife. It appears that we have a son and a daughter, hence the use of Samantha instead of Samuel."

Hermione pulled back and looked at him with the same look of shock he had felt in the delivery room. "But the results said we were having two boys," Hermione insisted.

"Be that as it were, can you imagine my shock when they placed a screaming baby in my arms and announced she was a girl? The nurse told me to check for myself if I didn't believe her. Of course, I took her word for it."

He was alarmed when he felt Hermione shaking against him, but relaxed immediately when he realized she was shaking with laughter. The stress of the day hit him and he began laughing with her.

"Oh sweet Merlin," Hermione breathed, "can you imagine what my mom is going to say? She kept saying we could be having two girls for all we knew."

"Damn," Snape said as he disentangled himself from Hermione's grasp and stood next to the bed. "In all the, uhm...excitement, I forgot to notify your parents. I'll be right back." The sound of her laughter followed him out into the hallway, making him feel as light as a feather. Everything was going to be okay. That is, if Mrs. Granger didn't murder him for not notifying her the moment Hermione went into the hospital.

* * *

I got the idea of putting the babies together from a segment I had seen on HLN entitled, "The Rescuing Hug." Here is a link to the segment, if you want to see the original story of how putting the babies together, helped one of them survive.

video/2013/02/22/rescue-hug-babies-17yrs-later


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